What Never Should Be
by blucougar57
Summary: What might have happened if Jack had refused to join Torchwood in 1899? Alternate Universe.
1. Ianto's New Job

_**A/N:** This is very much an AU, OOC fic. I wasn't planning on posting it until I'd finished "Ashes & Dust", but the muse had other ideas.  
This basically looks at one possible consequence, had Jack refused Alice Guppy and Emily Holroyd's "offer" to work for Torchwood in 1899. The story begins in current times, approximately six months before the battle of Canary Wharf._

_

* * *

_

Torchwood Tower  
London

Ianto Jones hated being kept waiting. Whether it was in a doctor's or dentist's surgery, for friends or family, or for a new employer, he hated it with a passion. Being made to wait for someone else took the control out of his hands, and Ianto Jones hated not being in control.

Right at that moment, he was sitting in the office of one Doctor Robin Spence, head of the Secure Archives department in Torchwood, London. The object of his growing irritation, the reputedly eccentric Dr Spence, had yet to appear, and it was now nearly twenty minutes past the time scheduled for his interview.

He was there for what he believed was a final round interview for a job that, in all truth, he wasn't even sure that he wanted. He'd been with Torchwood for nearly two years now, and had been perfectly happy in General Archives. It was his girlfriend, Lisa Hallett — girlfriend being a fairly loose description, mind — who had pressured him to apply for the position, and subsequent promotion, when news spread that Secure Archives needed a new person.

Secure Archives had better status, she'd insisted, and though he hadn't argued, he couldn't help but wonder just why it was that he needed status to begin with. In the end, after days and nights of nagging, he'd caved. After all, the pay was much better, and he desperately needed a boost to his ever-dwindling funds.

Even so, he couldn't help but wonder whether a raise in his pay packet was worth the utter bizarreness that went with the job, not to mention the aggravation of working directly under a man who was alleged to be a few sandwiches short of a picnic.

Ianto was just getting ready to leave — raise be damned — when the door swung open and Spence strode in.

"Ah, Jones, good. No time to waste, up you get. Got lots to show you, including exactly what you'll be doing."

Ianto blinked, confused and at something of a loss. "I'm sorry...? I thought I was here for an interview..."

"Hmm? What? Oh! Thought you'd been told already. You've got the job. By far the best candidate. Now get a move on, Jones. We don't have all day."

Ianto followed him in a daze. He'd been all psyched up for an interview that he had fully intended to mess up, only to find out that he'd gotten the job regardless. A job that he was starting to feel more and more strongly that he didn't even want...

The tour was most certainly of the whirlwind variety. He was given a basic code that gave him entry to the Secure Archive Vaults, but not to any of the artefacts housed within. According to Spence, he had to work for Secure Archives for a minimum of six months before gaining just the basic clearances.

"If you don't mind me asking, Dr Spence," Ianto ventured, "exactly what will I be doing, if I'm not going to be working with any of the artefacts?"

Spence grinned, then, and it was an expression Ianto quickly decided that he did not like. The man gave him a strong impression of a piranha that had just spotted something nice and juicy to feast on. "Just coming to that. We've got a very special task for you, Jones. Very important. This way."

He led Ianto deeper into the vaults until they finally reached a solid metal security door. "The code you've been given accesses this specific area," Spence explained. "In this room is your assignment."

"And that would be what, sir...?

Spence grinned, and opened the door. Ianto peered inside the brightly-lit room, wincing a little at the assault on his senses. It took him a moment to be able to see clearly, and once he could, he gasped out loud in astonishment at what he was seeing.

Inside the room was a man, huddled in a far corner of the room and watching them with wild eyes. He wore filthy sweatpants and a torn, dirty tee-shirt. His hair was long and shaggy — although, Ianto was curious to note that he had no beard or any other sign of facial hair — and there were manacles around his wrists and ankles, as well as what appeared to be a leather collar around his neck. Five separate chains kept him secured to the wall.

Ianto felt a rush of anger at the inhumanity of the sight before him. "Is this some sort of joke? Since when do we lock up humans?"

"This is no joke, Jones, and we don't consider it to be human. Say hello to Torchwood's longest surviving resident."

Slowly, Ianto took a step towards the man, only to stop when he bared his teeth in a snarl, and a low, menacing growl rose from deep in his throat. Spence moved in, then, and brandished a stun stick. The man cringed backwards into the corner, whimpering pathetically. Spence nodded his satisfaction.

"Always carry one of these when you come in here, Jones. Your predecessor forgot, and the freak here scared the living shit out of him. Don't be fooled. It's a lot faster and stronger than it looks."

"He," Ianto said automatically.

Spence shot him a quizzical look. "What was that?"

"He," Ianto repeated. "Not it. He."

Spence's expression hardened. "Don't go kidding yourself here, Jones. Even if this freak of nature was human once, it isn't now. Guess how long it's been here. Go ahead, take a wild guess."

Ianto was at a loss. When he failed to answer, Spence spoke with a manic glee.

"A hundred and six years! Can you believe it? And it doesn't look a day older than when Torchwood Three captured it."

"Excuse me, Dr Spence," Ianto said tersely. "How do you know he's not human? He looks a hundred percent human to me."

The manic grin widened. "Oh, I was hoping you'd ask that." With that, Spence pulled out his gun, and shot the chained man in the head.

"What are you doing?" Ianto screamed in horror, breaking away from Spence's side to kneel beside the prisoner. "You son of a bitch, you killed him! You didn't have to do that!"

With the air of one who had performed the same routine time and again, Spence grabbed Ianto by his shirt collar, and physically dragged him backwards. "Trust me, Jones. You don't want to be that close to him when he comes back."

"Comes back?" Ianto choked out. "What are you talking about? You shot him in the head! He's not coming back!"

"Just shut up and wait. Should only take thirty seconds."

Ianto stared in shock at Spence, wondering if the director was aware that a lunatic was in charge of Secure Archives. He was still trying to work out how to get word to her when the corpse in the corner suddenly lurched upwards with a strangled gasp. Ianto gaped in disbelief. The bullet wound was gone, and the previously lifeless eyes were now staring at Spence with a feral hatred.

"How...?" Ianto whispered in a daze, barely able to believe what he'd just witnessed.

"We don't know," Spence answered. "Test after test, and we still don't know how it works. And of course, the freak here obviously can't tell us. We've tried nearly every form of execution you can think of... Well, except decapitation. The Director seems a bit reluctant to try cutting its head off. You know, just in case it's permanent. But anyway, we keep trying, and its body just keeps resetting itself. It's fascinating to watch, really, especially when we've killed it by beating it to death. You can actually see the bruises and injuries disappearing. You know, we slit its wrists once, and the cuts just healed up within seconds of us making them?"

Ianto silently seethed as he listened to Spence's heartless commentary. He couldn't comprehend how anyone could justify treating another human like this, but he knew that it would be pointless to argue.

"What," he asked tersely, "are you expecting me to do?"

"Take care of it, of course," Spence answered. "Although, when I say take care of, I mean that fairly loosely. Don't worry, though. It's a simple enough job, and you'll have plenty of time over to assist the other archivists in between. Basically, all you need to do is make sure it's fed and watered, and hose it down once a day... You know, to clean up the shit. Sorry, Jones, I know it's not the most prestigious of jobs, but it's probably the most important one in this whole place. The Director wants it looked after, and someone has to do it."

Ianto could barely control his anger by then. Never in his life had he witnessed anything so shameful and disgusting. "Fed, watered and hosed down? Dr Spence, he isn't a fucking horse! He's a human being, and should be treated like it! This is... is... hell, I don't have the words to describe this. I can't believe the Director approves of it."

Spence regarded Ianto intently. "Believe it, Jones. She even comes down personally every other week to inspect it. This... freak of nature is Torchwood's most prized possession. You may not like it, but you will do your job. Understood?"

Ianto did, and he could hear the unspoken threat in Spence's voice only too clearly. He knew as well as the next person that there were consequences for employees who didn't do their jobs adequately, and he had no desire to be a part of that statistic. No matter, he mused darkly, that this was a job he hadn't even wanted.

"Yes, sir," he conceded in a subdued tone.

Spence grinned again, once more satisfied. "Good. I'll leave you to it. The kitchen I showed you before? There's a fridge in the far corner where we keep stock of the food that you'll be giving it."

"What sort of food?" Ianto queried.

Spence's grinned widened. "Trust me, it's nothing fancy. All you'll need to do is fill a bowl and put it down on the floor. It's not advanced enough to bother with a spoon."

Ianto let his breath out in a hiss. He hadn't even started, and he already hated this job.

"Oh, and keep this with you..." He pressed the stun stick into Ianto's hand. "Keep hold of that, and it'll be docile as a kitten." He paused, and then added soberly, "It's not human, Jones. It's a freak that shouldn't even exist. Remember that."

And then he was gone. Ianto stared down at the stun stick in his hand, and then up at the figure cowering in the corner. A pair of pale blue eyes watched him warily, with a fear and suspicion that Ianto guessed had been wrought by years of systematic abuse.

"You poor bastard," Ianto murmured, taking care to keep his voice low and non-threatening. "I'll bet everyone you see uses these rotten things on you, don't they? Well, I'm not going to be one of them."

He tucked the weapon into his belt, and hid it from sight beneath his jacket. Then, he smiled at the man in what he hoped was a reassuring manner. "You see? I'm not going to hurt you."

It happened so fast that Ianto was barely able to get out of the way in time. The prisoner suddenly exploded out of his corner and lunged at Ianto with a snarl. Ianto threw himself backwards, hitting the wall hard enough to wind himself, while his would-be attacker strained against the chains that held him in check.

For just a moment, they locked stares, and Ianto suddenly felt utterly sure that he didn't mean to hurt him — that all he craved was freedom. Then, the door burst open and Spence strode in, gun in hand.

"No!" Ianto screamed, terrified that Spence intended on shooting the poor man dead again. "Don't! He wasn't going to hurt me!"

For just a split second, those pale blue eyes alighted on Ianto with an undecipherable look, but then Spence fired, and the prisoner collapsed in a heap on the floor, howling in pain from where he'd been shot in the shoulder.

"You didn't have to do that," Ianto growled. "He wasn't going to hurt me."

Spence dragged Ianto none-too-gently to his feet.

"This is not a place for bleeding hearts, Jones. Get that straight right now, and you might actually live to see your next birthday. Now, get yourself out of here, and when you come back tomorrow, you'd better be ready to do your job. Go on, get out of here."

Ianto went, silently fuming, with the pitiful howls of the unfortunate prisoner echoing horribly in his ears.

* * *

"So?"

Ianto looked up in frustration at his girlfriend, Lisa Hallett.

"What?"

He couldn't quite keep the irritation out of his voice, nor even bring himself to care whether she noticed. After his experiences that afternoon, he was feeling increasingly resentful towards her for pushing him into applying for the Secure Archives position. Ever since his induction to Secure Archives, Ianto's mind had been filled with visions of playing nanny to a man who apparently had the mental capacity of an infant, and the instincts of a wild animal. It was both disturbing and heartbreaking, and Ianto honestly couldn't see himself surviving long where he was. If witnessing the de-humanising treatment of the prisoner didn't destroy him, then the abhorrent Robin Spence eventually would.

Lisa, however, appeared oblivious to his mood, watching him with an irritatingly bright smile.

"So what was it like?"

"I assume you're talking about the new job," he said flatly, wondering if there was a way he could put her off asking without thoroughly pissing her off. A moment beyond that, he found himself wondering why he even cared whether he pissed her off or not. Lisa uttered an irritated huff, and dropped down onto the couch beside him.

"C'mon, Ianto. Everyone knows that Secure Archives is where they keep it."

Ianto's jaw clenched. If he heard one more person referring to the poor bastard imprisoned in Secure Archives as 'it', he was going to scream. "It?" he asked sharply. "What, exactly, do you mean by 'it'?"

Apparently oblivious to his growing aggravation, Lisa spoke excitedly. "You know! The Torchwood prisoner! Remy said it's an alien, and Don thinks it might even be _him_!"

"Him...?" Ianto asked, puzzled.

"You know! The Doctor! So tell me, did you see it?"

Ianto felt a hot rush of anger as it occurred to him that this was the real reason Lisa had pushed him into applying for Secure Archives — purely so that her own morbid curiosity could be satisfied. "That's why you wanted me to apply for Secure Archives, isn't it? Damn it, Lisa, you knew I was happy where I was!"

"Oh, don't be like that," she begged him. "Secure Archives is a great step up! And isn't the pay a lot better?"

Ianto had to grudgingly concede to that. Even so, he couldn't honestly say it was worth it for what he was being expected to do.

"C'mon," Lisa cajoled lightly. "Can't you tell me anything? Just a hint?"

"Fine," Ianto growled. "It has eight arms, no legs, blue and green skin, tentacles for hair, and eyes on great, long stalks."

Lisa's eyes very nearly bulged out of her head at the description.  
"You're kidding..."

"Yes!" Ianto burst out. "I am. It's not an alien, Lisa, and it certainly isn't the Doctor."

"Well, then, what is it? Tell me!"

He twisted around to stare at her. "Lisa, today I witnessed the worst abuse of human rights that I've ever seen. It wasn't alien, it was a man. Just a man. He's being kept chained up in this little room in Secure Archives, and the poor bastard probably hasn't seen daylight for years. And they all think it's okay to just torture him whenever they feel like it! He's being treated worse than any animal, Lisa. It's horrible."

Lisa contemplated that for a long moment before shrugging it off. "If he's there, then there must be something wrong with him. Now, c'mon! I want to celebrate!"

Ianto stared at her, incredulous that she could be so dismissive of another's plight. "Don't you care at all?"

"Of course I do. It's terrible, and you should complain to the Director. Now, will you hurry up? The restaurant won't hold our booking if we're late."

Ianto knew what he should have done. He knew he should have told Lisa to forget it, and not just about dinner. But he was tired, still a little in shock, and simply didn't have the willpower left to argue with her.

And so, he went to dinner with his girlfriend and made meaningless small talk over steak, wine and some decadent dessert that he couldn't even name. When they got home, he took her to bed and then lay awake beside her for the rest of the night, wondering when Torchwood had lost is soul — or, indeed, if it had ever had one to begin with — and why he hadn't noticed before now.

* * *

_tbc..._

* * *

* * *


	2. The Man With No Name

He arrived at work the next morning feeling sick to his stomach with nerves. More than anything, he wanted to be able to show the man — he refused to think of him as anything but — that he wasn't going to hurt him. It had occurred to him, though, that perhaps the poor sod's mind was too far gone to comprehend anything but the cruel way that he had thus far been treated. He hoped not, but from what little he'd seen the previous day, it wasn't promising.

Ianto made his way straight to the kitchen after locking away his coat and other personal items. It didn't take long to find the fridge Spence had referred to. Someone had stuck a large piece of paper on the door, which simply read 'the freak'. Suppressing a fresh wave of anger, Ianto ripped it off the door and binned it. He then opened the fridge, only to have to slam it shut again to keep from vomiting. The smell coming from within was putrid, and made his stomach churn horribly. He stayed where he was for a long moment, struggling to breathe normally, before he looked around to find he wasn't alone.

Gage Adams, thirty-seven years old and one of the stalwarts of Secure Archives, was standing just inside the doorway of the kitchen, watching him curiously. Ianto coughed, and motioned to the fridge.

"It's all gone off. I'm going to have to clean it out, and get fresh food for him."

Gage walked over slowly. He wasn't an exceptionally tall man, or even particularly good looking, but there was a kindness in his eyes that Ianto had noticed was missing from the other employees of the Secure Archives.

"It's not off, Ianto. That's what he gets fed."

Ianto stared at Gage in disgust.

"That rubbish? You can't be serious! I wouldn't feed that to a stray dog!"

"I know, it's bloody awful crap," Gage agreed, "but even so, that's what we feed him. One bowl, three times a day, every day."

"I can't give him that," Ianto said with a shake of his head. "Might as well be feeding him poison."

"It's that, or nothing at all," Gage told him quietly. "Would you rather see him starve? Because believe me, Spence would be perfectly happy to let him. He's done it before."

"Son of a bitch," Ianto muttered. Gage hesitated, and then lay a hand lightly on Ianto's shoulder and spoke to him in a low voice.

"Listen, Ianto, don't pay any attention to what Spence or any of the others tell you. He may not be able to communicate, and it might seem like he's no better than one of those weevil things they get in Cardiff, but he's still human through and through. Now, he doesn't trust any of us, and with good reason, but you're new to him. Go about it the right way, and you might have a chance to get through to him, where we haven't been able to. Just... be patient, okay? And try not to use the stunner on him. You do that, and you'll lose any chance of getting him to trust you."

Ianto looked to the fridge. His stomach was still rolling at the thought of what was in there.

"It's not exactly going to help him to trust me if I have to feed him that slop."

"He's used to it," Gage said with a shrug. "I've been here for six years now, and in all that time I don't think he's ever been fed anything else."

"It's not right, Gage. None of this is."

Gage squeezed his shoulder briefly.

"I know, mate. But what can you do? This is Torchwood, and we all know what happens to anyone who doesn't follow the rules here."

"Retcon," Ianto muttered sourly. Gage nodded.

"Or worse. Just do what you can. That's all you can do. Show him that there's at least one person here that he doesn't have to be scared of."

A small smile touched Ianto's lips.

"I intend to."

* * *

Ten minutes later, Ianto stood outside the door that led into that hellish little room, stun stick in one hand and a bowl of food in the other. Although, he mused grimly, food was an extremely loose description of what was in the bowl.

Once he'd finally gotten his stomach to settle, he'd opened the fridge again and pulled out one of the many bowls that were stacked inside. What was inside that bowl looked like a cross between vomit and liquid shit, and smelt no better. He'd asked Gage incredulously what was in the horrid concoction, and Gage had told him that the official line was that it was a special recipe designed to give their unwilling guest all the nutrients he needed to stay healthy. The popular opinion was that the cooks from Torchwood's staff dining hall collected all the scrapings and left-over food and blended it all together, and that became what was now stocked in the fridge.

He was disgusted at the thought of having to feed it to the man three times a day, and was already trying to work out in his own mind how to start substituting real food.

Another of his co-workers, Enid Lange, was about to open the door for him when a thought suddenly occurred to Ianto.

"Wait a moment. What's his name?"

She stared at him blankly.

"Its name? It doesn't have a name."

"Well, what do you call him?"

Enid shrugged. "Oh, whatever. Usually just 'freak', though."

Ianto's jaw tightened fractionally. Clearly, Spence's refusal to acknowledge their unfortunate prisoner as a sentient human had rubbed off onto his juniors.

"I won't call him 'freak'," he said tersely. "I'll call him... Joe."

It didn't sound quite right to his own ears, but it was the first thing he could think of, and decided to simply go with it. Enid giggled in amusement.

"Joe, huh? Well, whatever you want. You're the one looking after it now, newbie. Okay, in you go. And make sure you keep that stun stick in sight all the time. No putting it away like you did yesterday."

Ianto frowned.

"He wouldn't have hurt me."

"Oh, you reckon? I heard it ripped someone's throat clean out with its teeth when they got careless around it, so don't you kid yourself that it's harmless. Now, go on."

The door slid open, and Ianto stepped inside.

The first thing Ianto noticed was the way the man cowered in the far corner. There was none of the hatred that he'd seen directed at Spence, but the fear and mistrust were tangible.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Ianto assured him, though this time he kept the stun stick visible — not so much for his own protection as much as his new charge. The last thing he wanted was to give Spence a reason to shoot him again. Speaking of which...

As near as Ianto could see, the bullet wound from the previous day was completely healed. He shrugged it off and spoke again.

"I promise I'm not going to hurt you. I've just brought food for you. See?"

He set the bowl down within the man's reach, and then retreated to the far wall. Slowly, the prisoner ventured forward, still watching Ianto. He only looked down when he reached the bowl.

Ianto uttered a snort of laughter at the look on the other's face as he examined the contents of the bowl, obviously having hoped for something different to what he'd been given. Blue eyes lifted sharply at the sound, and Ianto smiled apologetically.

"I'm sorry. I know, it's bloody awful rubbish. Give me a chance, and a little bit of time, and I'll try to bring something a little more palatable for you as soon as I can."

He watched as the man slowly began to scoop the disgusting mess out of the bowl with his hand, eating with about as much enthusiasm as one of Ianto's own nephews, when expected to eat a piece of broccoli. He hesitated, and then spoke cautiously.

"Joe?"

There was, unsurprisingly, no response. Ianto tried again, a little more firmly this time.

"Joe!"

This time, the man looked up quizzically, and Ianto grinned widely.

"Good," he praised him gently. "That's very good. I'm going to call you Joe from now on, okay? Because I don't know what your real name is, and no one else here seems to care whether you have a name or not. Maybe one day we'll prove them all wrong, and I'll be able to teach you to say my name, Ianto." He pointed to each of them respectively, repeating the names. "Joe. Ianto. Do you understand?"

Whether he did or not, Ianto had no way of knowing. Apparently bored with the impromptu lesson, the newly dubbed Joe went back to eating. Ianto waited patiently, and noted with interest the way that Joe shuffled back into his corner when he was done.

"You know the drill, don't you?" Ianto murmured as he collected the bowl. "Okay, I have to go now, but I'll be back at lunchtime. All right, Joe?"

Blue eyes watched him brightly, and Ianto felt sure at that moment that Joe understood him, even if on a very rudimentary level. Smiling once more at him, Ianto left the room.

* * *

"Joe?" Spence asked with a sneer as Ianto emerged into the corridor. "What the hell do you think you're going to achieve by naming it?"

"If I'm going to be looking after him," Ianto snapped back, "then I want to be able to call him by name. So, unless someone here can tell me what his real name is, then I'm going to keep calling him Joe."

Spence uttered a harsh bark of laughter.

"I like you, Jones. You've got balls. But I'll tell you again, don't make the mistake of humanising it. It won't do any good. Now, go and help Clare for the rest of the morning."

* * *

_tbc..._


	3. Simple Acts of Kindness

_**A/N:** Because I'm too impatient, and don't like making people wait when I have new chapters ready to go. There are another three chapters ready to be posted after this one. Review nicely, and I might be talked into posting them today..._

* * *

The days thereafter fell into a pattern, and though he had no way of being absolutely sure, Ianto honestly believed that Joe was coming to look forward to seeing him. He took Gage's advice to heart, and though he continued to carry the stun stick, he deliberately avoided using it, even when Joe startled him with his growls and snarls. Little by little, Ianto saw the fear fading from Joe's eyes as he began to comprehend that here was someone who didn't want to hurt him; and as the fear dissipated, so too did the growls that Joe uttered whenever Ianto appeared.

Ianto didn't forget about his promise to try and improve Joe's diet, but it wasn't until approximately two weeks later that he was finally successful in sneaking a little something extra in with the usual bowl of slop at lunch time. That day, when time came for Ianto to take care of Joe's midday feeding, he put the bowl on a tray, and next to the bowl he placed several pieces of carefully sliced apple.

He'd tried this several times before, only to be caught by Spence, who seemed to be watching him like a hawk. Today, though, everyone from Secure Archives was busy testing some new alien tech that had been delivered the day before from Glasgow.

After setting the tray down, Ianto stood back and watched with an amusement that also held a touch of sadness as Joe poked uncertainly at the apple. It was as though he honestly didn't know what to do with them.

"It's just apple, Joe," Ianto told him gently, when Joe showed no sign of trying the fruit. "It's fruit. It's good."

When Joe looked up at him, Ianto simulated eating. After a moment's hesitation, Joe picked up a piece of apple and cautiously sniffed at it, and then ventured a tiny lick. A moment later, a look of delight lit up his face, and he began to gobble down the pieces, one after another, until they were all gone. Then, ignoring the bowl, Joe looked hopefully at Ianto.

Ianto smiled in understanding. He'd anticipated such a reaction, and he had no intention of forcing his charge to eat what was in the bowl; not after getting a taste of fresh fruit. Reaching inside his jacket, he drew out a bag which held a single sandwich, and a second apple. It was his own lunch, and he'd already decided that going without was a small price to pay for a sight like this.

Joe had seen the apple, made the connection, and was whimpering eagerly.

"Just a second," Ianto murmured. He was just in the process of unwrapping the sandwich when the door opened and Spence stormed in.

"Jones, out. Now!"

Ianto's heart pounded in his chest, but he maintained an admirably calm exterior.

"Just one moment, sir. I haven't finished feeding Joe."

"Oh yes, you have. Move it!"

And then Spence was dragging him by his jacket collar again. Unable to stop the undignified treatment, Ianto did the only thing he could. He tossed the sandwich and apple to Joe just before Spence hauled him out of the room.

"Now, Robin, don't manhandle the boy. He didn't mean any harm."

Ianto looked around in shock at the familiar voice, and sure enough he found himself face to face with Torchwood Director Yvonne Hartman. Spence scowled, clearly in a less than forgiving mood.

"I don't care what he meant. The little bastard's just fucked up all our research!"

"Research on what?" Ianto exploded, deciding that if he was going to be fired and ret-conned, then he wasn't going to go quietly. "Keeping him docile through crappy food?"

Hartman laughed, much to Ianto's irritation.

"Oh, I like him, Robin. Not to mention, he's quite right. Whatever research you think you're conducting has been thoroughly negated by the fact that your treatment has turned it into a feral beast. We haven't been able to conduct any tests on it for over five years as a result."

"_Him_," Ianto protested. "He's not an 'it'!"

Hartman regarded him with obvious amusement.

"Yes. Well, I think it's time for a change in procedures. Jones here is the first person in thirty years to be able to walk into that room without getting snarled at. He's made more progress in two weeks that you've made in five years, Robin. I want you to give him a free hand with it... sorry, with him."

"_What_!?"

"You heard me. Whatever he wants for the... for our guest, you make sure he gets it. Am I understood? This is your next stage of research, Robin. To see how far you can progress with this new form of treatment."

Spence shot Ianto a sour look before nodding.

"Yes, Ma'am."

Hartman then turned her scrutinising stare on Ianto, who suddenly found himself wishing that he hadn't brought the attention to himself.

"And you, Jones, have a chance to prove yourself. I'm giving you six months to get it... him to a level of comprehension so that we can start up a new program of tests." She smirked at him. "Good luck."

Ianto watched her leave, with the simpering Robin Spence in tow, and felt his heart sink. Six months to prepare Joe for a fresh battery of abuse? What the hell had he done...?

* * *

He walked back into the room to a sight that brought a tired smile to his lips. Joe had crawled back into his corner, and was gnawing away at the apple, the juice from it running messily down his face. The sandwich had been abandoned, and a closer inspection told Ianto that Joe had attempted to eat it, only to be foiled by the plastic wrapping. There were teeth marks, and the sandwich was a mangled mess. By all appearances, Joe had tried to eat through the plastic before giving up and settling for the apple.

Ianto crouched down to pick it up, and became aware that Joe was watching him as he continued to devour the apple. They would have had to shoot him to get the fruit off him, Ianto reflected, and found himself grudgingly grateful for Yvonne Hartman's uncharacteristic consideration. Spence _would_ have shot Joe, purely out of spite, just to deprive him of the treat.

"It's all right," Ianto reassured him wearily. "It's yours. No one's going to take it off you. Just go ahead and enjoy it."

He figured that Joe must have comprehended the nuance of his words, if not the literal meaning, for he returned his full attention to devouring the apple, core and all.

"Tomorrow, you're going to start getting proper meals," Ianto promised. "No, not tomorrow. Tonight." He eyed the untouched bowl with distaste. "You'll not have to eat that slop anymore. Not while I have anything to do with it. I promise."

* * *

That afternoon, Ianto left Torchwood Tower and, equipped with a special credit card supplied to him by the Director's office, he went on a shopping spree for all the foods that he thought Joe would enjoy. He was just on his way back when he passed a camping store, with a simple camp bed displayed in the window. It wasn't anything fancy, Ianto mused, but it had to be more comfortable than the concrete floor.

His mind made up, Ianto hefted the bags of groceries up and went inside.

"You're out of your fucking mind, Jones," Spence said bluntly that afternoon, watching with ill-concealed disapproval as Ianto emptied the multiple pots of stored gruel down the drain.

"Director Hartman doesn't seem to think so, sir."

"That's what you think. She's laughing at you, Jones. We all are. You're a joke, boy. Not to mention, you're throwing out perfectly good food!"

Ianto paused in his task, glaring at the doctor in disgust and rapidly losing his patience.

"Would you eat it?"

"Don't be stupid, boy…"

"Then I suggest you shut up, sir. I will not be feeding this poison to Joe any longer. And that brings me to a couple of other issues. I have a camp bed that I plan to set up for him, and I want him released from those chains."

Spence gaped at him incredulously.

"You really are mad. It'll kill you!"

"Then your problems will all be solved, won't they? You'll get me out of your hair and be able to go back to treating Joe the same as before. But until then, I believe the phrase Director Hartman used was a 'free hand', wasn't it?"

Slowly, a cold smile spread over Spence's face.

"Fine. Go ahead, do whatever you want." He tossed a key at Ianto, who caught it in surprisingly nimble fingers, and turned to walk away. "But you do it on your own. I won't risk anyone else on your idiotic ideas."

Ianto looked down at the key, unable to help the uneasy twist in his gut. Maybe, he thought with a deep flush of shame, he would have Joe mildly sedated before setting up the camp bed and loosing him from his chains. After all, what good with it do Joe if he killed him, or even just injured him? It wasn't worth the risk. Not yet.

* * *

In the end, Ianto reluctantly decided to leave Joe chained by one ankle. It was for the safety of both of them, he insisted to himself. Deep down, though, he knew the real reason. As much as he wanted to, Ianto couldn't yet bring himself to trust Joe not to attack him.

He saw the way Joe's eyes watched the door every time it opened, and the way that Joe's muscles tensed briefly, as though he was getting ready to spring. The desire for freedom would surely override any sort of fragile bond that they'd established.

And so, that evening Ianto added just a small amount of muscle relaxants to Joe's food — a meal that consisted of fresh sandwiches, minus the plastic wrap; apple pieces, grapes, strawberries and fresh milk that Ianto presented to Joe in a tall, plastic cup with a spouted lid. Joe demolished it all, blissfully unaware of the drugs that had been mixed in carefully with the sandwich fillings.

Ianto felt a touch of guilt over that as he watched Joe succumb to the effects, but found it almost disturbingly easy to reconcile his tactics within his own mind. It was an undesirable, but ultimately necessary tactic in order to achieve something that was for Joe's benefit.

Once the bed was set up, Ianto unlocked all of the manacles, bar the one around Joe's left ankle. He also removed the collar from around Joe's neck, lamenting the severely chafed skin and cursing his own thoughtlessness for failing to bring any sort of ointment with him.

That done, he set about dragging the deadweight of Joe's drugged form up onto the camp bed. It was just long enough to accommodate the man's body length, and Ianto thanked Heaven that he'd had the foresight to buy the largest bed available. He then slipped a pillow under his head and covered him with a blanket — both items purchased from the same store as the camp bed.

"There," Ianto murmured, satisfied with his work. "No more sleeping on the floor for you. I'm just sorry that I can't do more for you yet... but I have six months. We'll see how we go."

He crouched down, taking advantage of the opportunity to get a closer look at his charge. Joe's pale blue eyes peered back at him blearily, and Ianto wondered at the history that was hidden behind those eyes. This man must have had an identity once, however long ago. There must have been people who knew him, who loved him. Where were they, and how could they possibly have abandoned him to this hellish fate?

"I'm going to help you," Ianto whispered, his fingers ghosting over Joe's matted and dirty hair, and his pale and gaunt features. "One way or another, I'm going to get you out of here."

* * *

_tbc..._


	4. Digging Into The Past

A/N: Due to the positive response I've received with this new fic, I've decided to post the next few chapters of this fic, as mentioned previously.

* * *

Over the next few weeks, Ianto divided his time between taking care of Joe and attempting to establish some form of communication between them, and searching the archives for any records that might give him a clue as to Joe's identity. It wasn't easy, not knowing his name, but Ianto did have a couple of scraps of information to go on.

Spence had said that Joe had been captured by Torchwood Three one hundred and six years ago. That made it 1899, and needless to say there was no one who would still be alive from the era to remember. There was, however, someone in Standard Archives who had dealt with the incorporation of Torchwood Three's archives into Torchwood One's, back in 2000 when that Alex fellow slaughtered his entire team.

Sylvia Turner smiled affectionately as Ianto placed a cup of coffee in her hands before sitting beside her. They'd met in Hyde Park, well away from Canary Wharf and Torchwood Tower, because it was well known that the walls had ears.

"We miss you, Ianto, love," she greeted him, and he indulged her in allowing her to hug him.

"You mean you miss my coffee," Ianto teased lightly, and she laughed.

"Guilty as charged. Oh, honey, it's good to be able to talk to you again. Now tell, is it true you're looking after him?"

Ianto raised an eyebrow. He didn't need to ask her to elaborate.

"You're only the second person I've come across who hasn't called him 'it', you know that?"

Sylvia smiled gently.

"He's still a man, no matter how different he is. Don't let them bully you into thinking otherwise, Ianto."

"I won't," he promised. "Sylvia, how much do you know? About Joe, I mean."

Her eyes sparkled with amusement.

"That what you're calling him? Joe?"

Ianto shrugged, trying to cover his embarrassment with casual indifference.

"Well, no one will tell me his real name, and I have to call him something."

"No one will tell you, love, because no one knows. Near as anyone knows, Torchwood Three never recorded his name. Those sorry bastards started dehumanising him the moment they got their hands on him."

"You dealt with Torchwood Three's archives. Wasn't there anything about him?"

"I did come across a folder with notes made by Torchwood Three's Alive Guppy. That woman must have been a real shrew, from what I could tell. It outlined your boy's capture, and the reasons for their interest in him."

Ianto stared at her intently.

"How much do you know about him?"

Sylvia glanced around almost guiltily before answering.

"Well, for starters, I know he doesn't stay dead. Dear Miss Guppy's notes highlighted a number of ways they tried to kill the poor love before they apparently gave up and just locked him away from everyone and everything. I know he's over a century old... and, I know he was once the Doctor's companion."

Ianto's eyes went wide. The other revelations were not much of a surprise to him, but that... That was a shock he hadn't been anticipating.

"The Doctor? As in, the Doctor that we're trained to identify for capture?"

"That's right. There are pictures, if you know where to look. Remember that mysterious disturbance in Cardiff about eight months ago? Well, there are pictures of the Doctor... the same Doctor who turned up when that spaceship crashed into Big Ben... a young woman and your Joe."

Ianto was reeling with the unexpected news, his mind trying to come to grips with how Joe could have possibly been in Cardiff with the Doctor eighteen months ago, when at the same time he had obviously been locked up within the Secure Archives of Torchwood One in London. He decided after a moment that he was better off simply not thinking about it.

"So... if I wanted to get Joe out of Torchwood, the only way to save him would be to find the Doctor."

"I'm going to pretend that I never heard you say that, sweetheart," Sylvia said quietly. Ianto shook his head roughly.

"I can't just sit back on my arse and do nothing, Sylvia. The Director gave me open slather with him for six months, and after that they plan to start running tests on him again. I can't stand by, knowing that they're going to hurt him again. I can't."

"Just be careful, love. This is Yvonne Hartman you're talking about going against, and that woman is ruthless. She'll tear you to pieces, Ianto, if you give her an excuse."

"I'll be careful," Ianto promised. He glanced at his watch, and stood up with a sigh. "I have to get back. It's wash time for Joe."

Sylvia smiled.

"Wash time?"

"Well, in a manner of speaking. I'm trying to teach him to wash himself, but it's a bit difficult because he still won't let me get too close to him. I just want to take away any excuse Dr Spence might use to hose him down."

On impulse, Sylvia leaned over and hugged Ianto.

"You're a good, kind boy, Ianto Jones, and I pray that the day won't be too far off when your Joe will be able to tell you how much he appreciates everything you're doing for him."

"One day at a time, Sylvia," Ianto said with a sad smile. "One day at a time."

* * *

Two days after his clandestine meeting with Sylvia, Ianto awoke with a pained groan. He knew instantly what was wrong. Toby Green had turned up for work yesterday coughing and spluttering fit to die, and insisting that he had too much work to do to take time off. Consequently, everyone in Secure Archives had been exposed to whatever nasty little virus the man had.

Ianto groaned, and promptly fell into a painful coughing fit. He was going to kill Green.

It took him the better part of half an hour just to summon the strength to get out of bed and into the bathroom, and by the time he'd managed to shower himself, he knew damn well that he wasn't going to make it to work that day, and probably not the next, either. He collapsed back into bed and, with some effort, managed to call the Institute firstly to notify the Powers That Be that he was sick and unable to work, and secondly to speak to Gage Adams, and beg him to take care of Joe until he was fit to go back to work. Gage was the only one he trusted to feed Joe, and ensure that he was treated decently.

Promise given, Ianto finally gave up on all rational thought and lapsed back into a fever-induced sleep, from which he would not awaken again for another forty-eight hours.

* * *

_tbc..._


	5. Breakthrough

_**A/N:** For anyone who particularly likes the character of Lisa, be warned there is some Lisa-bashing to come. I'm not fussed with the character either way, but it's just the way the fic is._

* * *

After six days, and an intense course of antibiotics, Ianto was finally fit enough to return to work, and the first thing he did was to head towards Joe's room. He would find Gage later, and thank him for taking care of Joe in his absence. He was nearly there when he was intercepted by Spence.

"Jones, nice to see you back at work. Feeling better, then?"

Ianto stared at Spence suspiciously. The doctor was sounding far too pleasant, and it triggered significant alarm bells in his mind.

"Yes, thank you, sir. It was just a touch of the flu. I'm fine, now."

"That's nice. It missed you, you know. No one to take care of it, and all."

The breath chilled abruptly in Ianto's throat.

"What are you talking about? Gage..."

"Oh, that's right. You didn't know, you've been sick. I temporarily reassigned Adams off-site. He won't be back until next week."

The chill in Ianto's throat began to spread down through his chest and into his gut, and his head started to spin.

"Reassigned since when?"

"Same day you called in sick, as a matter of fact," Spence answered smugly.

"Then who's been looking after Joe?"

Spence's answering sneer was more than Ianto could stomach and he bolted past him, desperate to get to Joe's room as fast as possible. In his panic, Ianto fumbled the key code twice before he finally got the door open. He stumbled into the room, and froze, his heart sinking at the sight before him.

The bed was gone, as was the pillow. The blanket was the only thing that remained from what Ianto had bought for Joe from the camping store, but it had been badly torn. Joe was huddled once more in his corner, clutching what was left of the blanket. His head was bowed low, and one of his hands was hidden beneath the blanket's tattered remains.

"Joe?" Ianto called out cautiously. When he got no response, Ianto ventured a little closer. "Joe."

Slowly, Joe's head came up and Ianto recoiled a little at the sight. Joe's face bore multiple stunner burns along with a number of bruises, some more recent than others. Even worse than the obvious evidence of abuse, though, was the resentment and anger than shone out from those pale blue eyes.

"Joe, I'm sorry," Ianto said, feeling sick to his stomach. "I am so sorry. I was sick, and I couldn't come in to take care of you. Oh god, look at your face..."

He took another step closer, only to stumble and fall heavily on his arse when Joe suddenly lunged forward with an angry snarl. Ianto sat frozen, locked momentarily in a staring match with the other man, who was held back only by the shackle that held his left ankle. Then, as Joe lifted his hand from beneath the blanket in what Ianto assumed was an intent to strike him the Welshman did the first thing that occurred to him. He slapped Joe's hand away, hard.

What happened next was almost beyond Ianto's powers of comprehension. In a scene that reminded Ianto spookily of the Cowardly Lion's first appearance in The Wizard of Oz, Joe stared wide-eyed at him for several seconds, his lower lip trembling, before sitting back down with a thump and abruptly bursting into tears.

Ianto sat there, gaping at him in shock, utterly thrown by the unexpected reaction. As he regained his wits, though, he finally saw what he had missed just moments before. Joe's hand was bloodied and broken, a ruined mess of flesh and bone. He hadn't been intending to lash out, Ianto realised in dismay. He had only wanted to show his injured hand.

Joe continued to howl pitifully, cradling his hand to his chest. Ianto shook himself back to reality and pushed aside his own fears to move closer.

"I'm sorry," he murmured sincerely. "I didn't know your hand was hurt. C'mon now, let me see it."

He reached out and took a very careful hold of Joe's wrist. As near as he could tell, all of his fingers were broken, along with more than one bone in his hand. Whatever had happened, it hadn't been an accident.

"I know it hurts," Ianto said as Joe continued to cry noisily. "I'm sorry I slapped it, but you startled me." He shifted positions and got to his feet. "I'll be right back, I promise."

* * *

Ianto emerged from the room to find Spence waiting there for him.

"You bastard, you broke his hand!" Ianto snarled, his rage boiling over.

"No, Jones, it wasn't me. Jon Bourke had the honour of doing that, and he was perfectly justified in doing it. The freak tried to attack him when he got rid of that bloody camp bed. That was just a goddamned waste of money, if you ask me."

"I didn't," Ianto snapped, "and I paid for it out of my own pocket! You had no right to take it off him!"

"Get off your high horse, Jones," Spence snorted.

"Well, you had no right!" Ianto shouted angrily. "I bought that bed for him, and you had no right to take it away from him!"

"Where the hell are you going?" Spence demanded to know as Ianto stormed past him.

"To get a first-aid kit, because Joe needs medical attention. Then, I have to see about getting him a new bed. And then, I'm reporting this straight to Director Hartman."

He walked away quickly before Spence could stop him.

* * *

Joe's sobs had eased off a little by the time Ianto returned, but he remained the picture of misery. Hoping he was doing the right thing, Ianto set about splinting and bandaging Joe's hand to immobilise it while it healed.

"There we go," Ianto told him, offering a reassuring smile. He briefly contemplated trying to get Joe to swallow some painkillers, but just as quickly abandoned the idea. It would be too difficult trying to get Joe to understand what they were for, and Ianto did not want to risk damaging the fragile progress that had been made. He would instead crush some tablets later, and conceal them in some warm milk.

Ianto was pulled from his thoughts by a prodding sensation to his shoulder, and he looked to find Joe was poking at him to get his attention.

"What is it?" Ianto asked, and Joe lifted up the remains of his blanket. The Welshman nodded.

"I know. The nasty people took your bed away. Don't worry, I'm going to get you a new one, with a mattress and some nice, soft pillows." He paused, reaching up to gently thumb away a smear of dirt from Joe's temple. "You're going to be looked after properly from now on, and anyone who hurts you will answer to me."

A moment later, Ianto nearly had the wind knocked out of him when Joe tackled him. For a heart-stopping moment, he thought he was being attacked, but the realisation quickly dawned that Joe was, in fact, hugging him. It was clumsy and a little over-exuberant, but genuine and heartfelt. Warmed by the innocent gesture, Ianto hugged him back gently.

"It's going to be all right, Joe. You'll see."

* * *

Ianto's meeting with the Director was equally frustrating and productive. Her utter lack of concern for the injuries inflicted on Joe left him seething, but by similar account, nor did she hesitate to approve the purchase of a proper new bed for him. She was nothing short of ecstatic to learn that Joe was now allowing Ianto to make physical contact; a reaction that left Ianto feeling uneasy, to say the least. Still, Ianto had never been one to ignore a potential opportunity, and here was one that he couldn't afford to disregard.

"Ma'am, it would be better all round if we were to move him somewhere else. Somewhere with proper plumbing?"

Hartman regarded him in bemusement.

"Are you offering to toilet-train him, Jones?"

Ianto blushed red, but held his head high.

"Actually, Ma'am, I don't believe it would take much training, as you put it. Just... remembering. But it's not just that. Bathing facilities would be much appreciated as well."

Hartman shook her head.

"Sorry, Jones. Can't allow it. We don't have anywhere else to put him that had that level of security, and we just can't risk him escaping. He's too valuable a commodity."

Ianto struggled against a desire to snap at her for labelling Joe a commodity. Fighting for calm, he tried for a compromise.

"Can I at least give him a proper bath in the staff bathroom in Secure Archives? Hosing him down really isn't acceptable, Ma'am. He's not an animal... despite common belief."

"I'm assuming you mean that as more than a once-off?" she asked.

"Once every two days?" Ianto suggested. He wanted to be able to bathe Joe every day, but knew instinctively that it was expecting too much. It was no surprise to him when Hartman shook her head.

"Once a week, if you absolutely must."

Ianto frowned.

"Every third day, then."

"This isn't up for negotiation, Jones."

Ianto affected a long sigh.

"Very well, Ma'am. Just three times a week, then."

Hartman peered at him over the rim of her glasses.

"Mr Jones, I refuse to believe your math skills are so bad that you don't realise that three times a week is more frequent than every third day."

Ianto watched her owlishly.

"You're the one who gave me open slather, Ma'am, and I don't believe I'm being unreasonable. Now, you may not care than my colleagues have been using him as a punching bag, but surely even you should care that he's been forced to live in absolute squalor."

She poked primly at her glasses.

"Can you control him?"

"Yes, Ma'am. He'll do what I ask him to do."

"He'd better, Jones. Very well. You may use the Secure Archives bathroom three times a week, but I'm warning you. If there's any trouble at all, you'll be held exclusively responsible. Am I understood?"

"Absolutely."

"All right, then. Go on. I don't want to see you in my office again."

* * *

His foray into the city that afternoon was to a proper bedding store, rather than a camping store, and there he purchased a strong wooden bed frame with slats, a decent mattress and all the sheets, blankets and pillows to go with it. As he unloaded it all back at Torchwood Tower, his thoughts turned dark at the idea that Spence might try to have this taken away as well.

"Over my dead body," Ianto muttered under his breath, and then promptly hoped he wasn't jinxing himself by thinking that. After all, he knew full well that Spence could probably quite cheerfully strangle him right then.

The look on Joe's face was priceless when he wheeled it all into the room. He suspected that Joe had a rudimentary understanding of what was happening, but that was all.

"Here," Ianto told him, handing him one of the pillows. "Why don't you try that out while I get this sorted out for you?"  
Joe, to Ianto's quiet amusement, placed the pillow on the floor and lay his head down on it.

"Comfortable, I gather?" he asked, and Joe uttered a sound of pure contentment, causing the Welshman to laugh. "That's good. All right, let's see here..."

Half an hour later, the bed was assembled and made, and Ianto watched with immense satisfaction as Joe curled up on it in contentment. After a brief moment of observation, Ianto crouched down beside the bed and gently brushed a strand of hair back from Joe's face.

"This is all yours. I won't let them take it away from you again."

Joe reached out with his uninjured hand and, with a surprisingly gentle touch, placed his palm on Ianto's cheek.

"Yan. Toe."

Ianto's eyes widened in astonishment as it registered in his brain what had just happened.

"Yes," he said eagerly. "Yes, that's right! I'm Ianto! Can you say it again?"

Joe didn't speak again, though. Instead, he continued to stroke Ianto's cheek in a tender, almost intimate gesture. Ianto felt a shiver pass down his spine as he felt something almost electric pass between them. It would be easy, too easy to just lean forward, and...

He jerked backwards, horrified with himself. There was no denying that Joe was an incredibly beautiful man, even through the grime that was smeared over his face and body.  
Even so, it was no excuse to even contemplate taking advantage of someone whose mental capacity was effectively that of a child.

Slowly, Ianto came back to the present to realise that Joe was watching him worriedly. He forced his concerns aside and smiled gently, reaching up to close his hand over Joe's, where it still rested against his cheek. Joe was nearly asleep, soothed by the comfort of the new bed, and Ianto's protective presence.

"That's it," Ianto murmured. "Shut your eyes and go to sleep. I'll bring dinner for you tonight, and then tomorrow I'm going to show you how much fun a bubble bath can be."

* * *

"So," Lisa said that night as she and Ianto sat together watching a DVD after polishing off Chinese takeaway. Ianto glanced at her questioningly, his hackles instantly rising at her tone.

"What?"

"Jake told me you were in the Director's office today."

Ianto bit back a groan. Nothing went unnoticed within the Torchwood Tower. It was like living in a bloody gated community.

"Yes," he said simply, returning his attention to the DVD, and hoping Lisa would take the hint. She didn't, much to his chagrin.

"What were you in there for?"

"I just needed to speak to her concerning Joe," he answered bluntly. "Nothing to be worried about. It's all sorted now."

"Oh... I thought it must have been something important."

Ianto shut his eyes. He had to take a moment to calm himself before he could respond to that.

"It was important, Lisa."

"But you just said it was about Joe..."

He regarded her with irritation.

"Yes, I did. Do you realise that while I was away sick, my wonderful colleagues took away the camp bed I bought for him?"

Lisa snorted.

"Waste of money, that was. I can't imagine he'd know the difference between sleeping in a bed or on the floor."

Ianto seethed, but somehow bit his tongue.

"One of them had also broken Joe's hand, quite badly."

"Well," Lisa mused, "it's not as if it really matters, is it? I mean, it's not like he needs it for anything, right? And really, can he even feel pain?"

Slowly, Ianto set aside his coffee and stood up. Lisa looked up at him in astonishment.

"Ianto? Where are you going?"

"To bed," Ianto said stiffly. "I have to be up early tomorrow morning. Good night, Lisa."

He went, leaving her staring after him in open-mouthed confusion.

* * *

_tbc..._


	6. Bubblebaths & Chocolate

_The next afternoon_

"Oh, you are kidding me."

Ianto glanced back at Spence, who was standing the doorway of the bathroom.

"Problem, sir?"

"Oh, no. No, not at all. You just go right ahead. Use our private facilities for your bloody pet. Go ahead and treat it like fucking royalty. Bloody hell, Jones..."

Ianto returned his attention to the bath, determined to do everything he could to ensure the experience was as enjoyable for Joe as possible. He'd added a generous amount of bubble bath formula, and now strawberry scented bubbles were positively frothing up and over the edge of the tub.

"I have approval from Director Hartman to use these facilities three times a week. If you have a problem with that, please take it up with her. If you'll excuse me, I have to bathe Joe."

Spence shook his head as Ianto moved past him.

"One day you are going to come crashing down, you pompous little bastard, and I promise you that I will be there to crow when you do."

* * *

When Ianto re-entered Joe's room, he paused, observing Joe critically. This was the moment of truth, where he found out whether his time with Joe had been enough for Joe to obey him. He wanted this to work desperately, and not only for his own sake. If this was successful, then it meant the start of a much better life for Joe... or at least, that was what Ianto hoped.

Ianto walked over to where Joe sat on his new bed, clutching the torn blanket in his good hand. It had become something of a security blanket to him, Ianto supposed, and even though it was now torn and ragged, he wouldn't have dreamed of trying to take it away from him. He crouched down and unlocked the manacle around Joe's ankle. His heart was in his throat, and he fully expected his charge to bolt. It didn't happen.

Ianto looked up to find Joe watching him quizzically, and he smiled in reassurance. Standing, he held out a hand to Joe.

"C'mon, it's all right. Take my hand."

Joe hesitated, though, his gaze flitting nervously to the open door. For a moment, Ianto was confused. He'd been positive that Joe would take the opportunity and try to bolt. But instead, he sat there, unmoving, as though afraid...

And suddenly, realisation hit.

"You were experimented on, weren't you?" he asked softly. "The last time you left this room, they hurt you. You're remembering that."

As he spoke, a new realisation struck. He realised that all the times he'd noticed Joe watching the door, it hadn't been out of a desire to get out. Rather, it had been out of a fear of what would happen to him beyond the perceived safety of his room. Reaching out, Ianto stroked his fingers lightly over Joe's cheek in a soothing gesture.

"I'm not going to hurt you, cariad. Trust me."

He knew Joe didn't understand the words, but he hoped and prayed that he at least understood the tone. He startled himself, though, with his use of the Welsh word 'cariad'. Personally, he had always considered that particular word as being more intended for use between lovers... and yet, he felt comfortable using it with Joe. He couldn't explain it, or even really understand it within himself. It simply felt right.

Whether it was his words, or his tone, something worked. Suddenly, Joe accepted his hand and stood up.

"Walk with me, Joe," Ianto encouraged him, leading him towards the door. "Don't look at anyone else. Just walk with me, okay?"

With that, he slowly led Joe out of the room and down the hall.

* * *

Neither Spence nor any of his little lackeys were anywhere to be seen, and for that Ianto was extremely grateful. He led Joe along the corridor, and through into the bathroom.

Joe halted just inside the bathroom door, and Ianto felt him go rigid with fear. Whimpers escaped his lips, and when Ianto looks back at him, he saw tears start to roll down Joe's pale cheeks.

"Hey," Ianto murmured as Joe began to cry. "Hey, what's with the tears? It's all right, there's nothing here to hurt you."

Except, Ianto realised belatedly, there was. Joe's eyes were fixed on the tub, and Ianto suddenly found himself wondering what sort of water-based torments and tortures Joe might have been forced to endure in the past. Drowning? Electrocution, maybe? He didn't really want to know. All that was important now was making Joe understand that he had not been brought here to be tortured. The big question, though, was how to achieve that.

"Come over here," Ianto urged him, guiding him over to sit in a chair near the tub. Joe sat stiffly, still whimpering, and all the while clutching his blanket. Ianto ruffled his hair affectionately before stepping back and quickly stripping down to his shorts. By the time he was down to his boxers, Joe's whimpering had almost stopped, and he was staring at Ianto with a wide-eyed, curious gaze. Hoping he was doing the right thing, Ianto stepped into the tube and sank down into the hot water.

"See?" Ianto said with what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Nothing to be afraid of. There's nothing here to hurt you."

Heart in his throat, Ianto risked closing his eyes and sinking down a little into the hot water. The soft moan that slipped from his lips was not entirely faked, either, as the heat of the water and the gentle fragrance from the bubbles began to soothe his own slightly frayed nerves.

Ianto wasn't sure how long he allowed himself to drift for. It might have been seconds or minutes. Gradually, though, he became aware of a soft splashing sound, and slowly opened his eyes to find Joe was crouching by the tub, and dipping his uninjured hand experimentally into the water.

Abruptly, Joe became aware that he was being watched, and Joe started back in mild fright. Ianto, however, smiled warmly and made no attempt to keep Joe where he was. It was, perhaps, the lack of any sort of pressure that encouraged Joe not to flee in panic.

"See?" Ianto told him gently. "It doesn't hurt. It feels good."

Ianto wasn't precisely sure when the turning point came in Joe's own mind. All he knew was that one moment Joe was idly splashing at the surface of the water. The next, he was climbing awkwardly into the tub with Ianto, clothes and all.

Ianto laughed, partly in relief and partly in amusement, as Joe sat with a deliberate thud, sending water splashing over the sides.

"There, you see? Doesn't that feel nice?"

Joe scooped up a handful of bubbles and stared at them curiously before suddenly bringing his hand to his face and licking at them. It was all Ianto could do not to burst out laughing as Joe's face screwed up at the soapy taste.

"No, not for eating," he said with a smile. "For washing. Look."

He simulated washing himself, and after a moment Joe tentatively began to copy. Ianto watched him keenly for the next few minutes while Joe pawed clumsily at his own body, before risking moving closer.

"Here, let me."

Joe stiffened just momentarily as Ianto soaped up a sponge and began to rub it gently up and down his arms. As Joe began to understand that it wasn't hurting, he started to relax and enjoy it. Ianto washed Joe's arms carefully before gently indicating the tattered top that Joe wore.

"How about we take this off, hmm?"

He reached out to lift the top from Joe's torso, only to stop when Joe cringed.

"It's okay," Ianto reassured him. "Really. Look..."

He patted his own bare chest, but to no avail. Joe clutched the wet material of his top to his body.

"All right," Ianto conceded. "Let's see, where did I...? Ah, there it is!"

He clambered out of the bath, trying to ignore the panicked noises Joe was making. Grabbing a pile of clean, new clothes from another chair, he brought them back for Joe to see.

"Look," Ianto told him. "These are for you. New clothes, just for you. Do you see?"

Ianto waited breathlessly, hoping fervently that Joe would make the connection. Joe stared first at the clothes Ianto held, and then at the tattered and worn tee-shirt that was currently plastered to his body. Seeing understanding slowly dawning in Joe's eyes, Ianto opened up the folded tee-shirt to show him. That was all it needed, and Joe began to try and peel off what he was wearing.

Smiling with relief, Ianto helped him take it off. He turned away for just a moment to dispose of the material when a tremendous splashing startled him into turning around. Joe had disappeared beneath the surface of the water, and only his arms were visible as he flailed.

Ianto plunged his hands into the water, found Joe and hauled him back to the surface.

The next few minutes were filled with coughing and spluttering as Ianto gently wiped the soap and water from his face with a clean cloth.

"What on earth were you trying to do?" Ianto murmured. "You nearly drowned yourself, you silly fool."

Joe rubbed at his eyes before looking up at Ianto in a slight daze. He then lifted a leg awkwardly out of the water, and would have slipped again had it not been for Ianto's steadying hands on his shoulders. Ianto laughed softly as realisation dawned.

"Pants, too? You were trying to take them off. Okay, then."

He had Joe stand briefly, just long enough to carefully remove the ragged sweatpants, leaving his charge naked in the bath. As Joe splashed contentedly, Ianto disposed of both tee-shirt and pants. Both items of clothing were not fit for wearing, not by any stretch of the imagination. He then settled down on the edge of the bath to wash Joe's back and shoulders, all the while frowning at Joe's visibly emaciated body. It was going to take time for there were any visible signs of improvement through the changed diet.

"I'm going to wash your hair now," Ianto told him as he ran his fingers through Joe's hair. It was thick with dirt and grime, leaving Ianto to wonder whether he'd had his hair washed in the whole time he'd been a prisoner of Torchwood.

In the end, he used nearly half a bottle of shampoo — not because Joe's hair was filthy enough to need it, but because every time he started to put the bottle away Joe pouted and patted his hair. If it hadn't been for the circumstances, Ianto would have found it amusing to see a grown man practically purring at the feeling of having his hair washed.

It was nearly an hour later, with the water rapidly going cold, that Ianto was finally able to get Joe out of the bath and dry them both off. Joe, Ianto noted with amused pleasure, was as excited about the new clothes as he had been about his new bed.

"Perfect," Ianto said approvingly as he looking Joe up and down. His selection had been simple enough, intended for comfort and warmth, rather than style. A plain blue tee-shirt and a fleecy-lined sweater, similarly lined sweatpants, woollen socks and slippers. The slippers didn't make for the most stylish look, Ianto conceded, but then Joe was hardly bothered by the fashion faux pas. He was comfortable and happy, and that was what mattered.

Allowing Joe to collect his blanket from where he'd discarded it before getting into the bath, Ianto then led him out of the bathroom. They'd barely gone ten feet when Spence rounded the corner with Gage Adams trailing behind him. The doctor's face creased with hatred and disgust at the sight of Joe, and in return Joe snarled at the doctor. Rage flashed across Spence's face, and he immediately began to reach for his holstered gun. Joe uttered a yelp of fear, and tried to hide behind Ianto.

The young man caught Joe's hand and squeezed it reassuringly, all the while glaring at Spence.

"Don't do it, Dr Spence. Don't even think about it."

A sneer spread across Spence's face, but he took his hand away from the gun.

"It's not worth the bullet. And I see you've gone and wasted more Institute funds?" he said, eyeing the new clothes Joe wore.

"Just the necessities, sir."

"Necessities my arse. There was nothing wrong with what it was wearing!"

"Oh, shut the fuck up, Dr Spence," Gage spoke up suddenly, startling both Ianto and Spence. "He's been wearing the same clothes for about three or four years now. They were falling apart, and they stank. Ianto was right to get him some new stuff. The Director gave him permission herself, so just bloody deal with it, would you?"

Spence scowled and, with a last threatening look at Joe and Ianto, stormed away down the corridor.

"Ignore him, Ianto," Gage said quietly once Spence was gone. "You've done good, mate."

"Thanks," Ianto murmured, slightly uncomfortable with the praise. "And thankyou for standing up to Spence."

Gage snorted derisively.

"Don't thank me. If I'd had any balls, I would've stood up to him years ago. Instead, I stood back and let him and the rest of them keep treating Joe like an object, and not a person."

"Well, thankyou anyway."

"Mm, yeah. Well, at least he's being properly looked after now."

Ianto nodded, grateful for the validation. Gage peered past him, to Joe, who was still huddling nervously behind Ianto.

"Hi, Joe."

A pair of pale blue eyes peered at him over Ianto's shoulder, and Gage smiled a little, and then dug into his jacket pocket.

"Here, Ianto. I was saving this for later, but I bet Joe would like it more."

Ianto's tentative smile widened just a little at the sight of the bar of chocolate that Gage had handed him. Thus far, he'd avoided providing Joe with any such treats, but today was as good a day as any to break that self-imposed rule.

"Thankyou, Gage," he murmured. Gage clapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Don't thank me. It's one lousy bar of chocolate. Just keep looking after him, all right?"

Ianto nodded as Gage walked away.

"I will."

* * *

Back in the sanctity of the room, Ianto had Joe sit on his bed, and hold out his injured hand for re-bandaging. It was healing, but much slower than Ianto had anticipated. Consequently, it was still hurt him a lot. Joe, however, was not cooperating, and every time Ianto tried to start bandaging it, Joe pulled away with a whimper.

"I need you to hold it still," Ianto insisted with a hint of frustration when Joe pulled away from him for the fourth time. "Just for a few minutes, Joe, please!"

He was answered with an unhappy whimper, and large tears that rolled down Joe's face. Sighing, Ianto set the bandage aside, and held his hands out.

"Let me see it. I'm not going to hurt you, Joe. Just show me your hand."

Slowly, nervously, Joe held out his injured hand. Ianto took it in a feather-light grip, and murmured in sympathy as he observed the badly bruised flesh.

"Poor love. I'll get you some more painkillers shortly. Right now, though, I really need to be able to bandage this up." He paused, and before he had a chance to consider whether it was a bad idea, Ianto leaned down and brushed a soft kiss over Joe's knuckles. When he looked up again, he was amused to see the wide-eyed look that Joe was giving him. He smiled, and kissed the bruised flesh once more.

"There. Feel better?"

Ianto didn't honestly expect a reply, and couldn't conceal his surprise when Joe spoke softly, haltingly.

"Better."

Ianto stared at him with a delighted smile.

"That's good, Joe. Really good. Now, let me put a bandage on it, and then you can have a treat."

He wasn't sure exactly how much English Joe really comprehended, but it was clear that he'd come to associate the word treat with something good happening. The word had barely left his lips when Joe's face lit up. Ianto laughed softly.

"All right, then. But bandage first, treat second. Now hold out your hand."

Joe seemed to understand, for he made no further protests. Though it obviously hurt him, he sat still and allowed Ianto to bandage it. Once the task was done, Ianto kissed the injured hand again before pulling out the chocolate bar that Gage had given him. He unwrapped it and broke a piece off.

"Here, try this. Go ahead, you'll like it. I promise."

Joe nibbled tentatively at the piece of chocolate before the taste of it really registered in his expression. When it did, he stuffed the piece into his mouth and hummed in delight as he did so.

"Good, isn't it?" Ianto said with a laugh, and Joe grinned at him, his mouth full of melted chocolate. Ianto laughed harder still.

"Oh yeah. You like chocolate."

He waited for his charge finish off the first piece before allowing him a second piece. Ianto proceeded to feed him the entire chocolate bar that way, taking great satisfaction in Joe's enjoyment. It was, Ianto mused, just about the happiest he'd seen Joe since he'd started taking care of him.

"Thankyou, Gage," Ianto murmured, grateful for the consideration of his colleague. His musings were interrupted when Joe suddenly uttered a jaw-popping yawn. Ianto smiled at him affectionately as Joe crawled into bed and snuggled down beneath the covers. His eyes were already starting to slide shut from the exhaustion of the day's activities.

Reaching out, Ianto tenderly stroked Joe's newly-washed hair.

"Yes, you just shut your eyes and have a sleep. It's been a big day for you. Go to sleep, and I'll wake you up for dinner in a couple of hours."

He stayed crouching there, ignoring the cramping in his legs, until Joe was asleep. Only then did he finally leave. He headed straight for the kitchen, intent on preparing a decent meal for Joe. He was in the middle of preparing a selection of vegetables when a voice spoke scathingly behind him.

"Tell me something, Jones. How does it feel to go from Torchwood archivist to nanny and babysitter?"

Ianto barely suppressed a groan. He turned slowly to find himself facing Carl Branton, one of Spence's own personal protégés.

"More fulfilling than you could possibly imagine," Ianto replied flatly. Carl sneered at him.

"You fucking pansy, Jones."

"What do you want, Carl?" Ianto asked wearily. "I'm busy."

"I'm just wondering what a waste of space like you is getting out of taking care of the freak. Are you getting off on it? Is that it, Jones? Are you fucking it?"

Anger and disgust flooded Ianto's face.

"Get out of here, Carl. I don't have time for your sick rubbish. Go back to your hole in the wall. I'm sure Gemma's waiting for you. Or, is it Tristan today?"

The next instant, Ianto was sent reeling into the fridge when Branton punched him hard in the face. He was just recovering from the blow when Branton punched him again, and then delivered a knee to his gut, leaving him gasping painfully for air. He suspected that the assault would have continued, except someone dragged Branton away from him. Ianto groaned with relief when he looked up. It was Gage.

"Let me go!" Branton bellowed, but he was no match for Gage's greater strength.

"No can do, mate. Not until you calm down, and quit using Ianto for a punching bag."

"He deserves it. The little fucker called me a queer!"

"Yeah, well, you called him one first, so I suggest you quit now before someone decides to email the Section Seven footage from last Thursday evening all around the building."

Branton went white with an unpleasant combination of fear and rage.

"You son of a bitch..."

Gage glowered dangerously at him.

"Don't try me, Carl. I'm not in the mood, and I'll cheerfully take your damned head off. Just get out of here, now."

Branton went, seething.

"I'm probably going to regret that," Gage chuckled as he turned back to help Ianto. "Ah, well. You all right, Ianto?"

"Yes, thankyou," Ianto answered, and then grimaced as he gingerly touched a finger to his split lip. "Just a slight loss of dignity."

Gage chuckled.

"Oh, trust me, mate. Your dignity is intact. Carl's, on the other hand, has sustained a couple of heavy hits. Hold on a moment..."

Rummaging through the freezer, he produced a packet of mixed vegetables, and placed it over Ianto's rapidly swelling eye.

"That's Joe's dinner you're using as a cold compress," Ianto stated dryly. Gage chuckled again.

"I'm sure he'd understand. You know, most of us are in awe of you?"

Ianto couldn't help expressing scepticism.

"Yeah, right."

"I'm serious, mate. With the exception of Carl, Jon and Dr Spence, every one of us was of the same opinion as you when we started here, that what was being done to that poor bastard was unconscionable. But we were cowards, and we let Spence dictate to us. You're the only one who's had the balls to stand up to him, and to treat Joe the way he deserves to be treated."

"Like a human being?" Ianto queried, and Gage nodded, looking suitably embarrassed.

"Yeah, exactly. Frankly, it's no wonder none of us can get anywhere near him, and before you started here, we wouldn't have even considered giving him a bath like you did earlier. It wouldn't have been possible. He'd have ripped our throats out if we'd tried."

"He's really not as vicious as you think," Ianto said reprovingly. "He's just afraid of all of you, and you really haven't given him a reason not to be. Look, come with me when I take dinner in to him. You'll see what I mean."

Gage looked uncertain.

"Are you sure? It won't aggravate him, will it?"

A small smile graced Ianto's lips.

"You bring another bar of chocolate with you? You'll be the hit of the evening, I guarantee it."

* * *

_tbc..._


	7. A New Friend

Joe was awake when Ianto and Gage brought dinner in for him that evening, and Joe's expression was deeply wary when he saw Gage. Ianto, however, only smiled warmly and put his arms around Gage in an exaggerated gesture of friendship.

"It's okay, Joe," Ianto reassured him. "He's friend. He's come to help bring you dinner. See?"

At Ianto's urging, Gage ventured forward, carrying a plate that held a modest serving of hot meat and vegetables. There was a fork on the plate, but no knife – Ianto had taken the liberty of cutting everything up into manageable portions before bringing it in to Joe.

As Gage set the plate down on the little table that Ianto had procured – he'd told Spence in no uncertain terms that Joe would no longer be eating off the floor like a dog – Joe suddenly growled menacingly at him. Gage leapt back, startled, but Ianto strode forward and sat down fearlessly beside Joe.

"Stop that," Ianto told him sternly, as though he was telling off a small child for misbehaving. "He's being nice, so you can be nice, too. Now, stop that noise."

The growling ceased abruptly as Joe's attention shifted to Ianto, and all of a sudden Gage was sure Joe was about to cry. His lower lip trembled, and his eyes became watery as he sat there, looking thoroughly chastened.

"Now then," Ianto said in a gentler tone. "Tell Gage you're sorry."

Gage was fairly certain that Joe didn't really comprehend what Ianto was telling him, but when Joe looked around at him, the expression on his face was heartbreaking. Whether he understood what Ianto had said or not, it was obvious that he understood the intent behind the words. Suddenly deciding that he didn't like seeing the other man looking so upset, Gage put aside his uncertainties and crouched down in front of Joe.

"Hey, it's okay, really," Gage told him gently. "Don't be upset."

Tentatively, Joe held out his injured hand to Gage, who looked to Ianto in puzzlement.

"He's telling you he's got a sore hand," Ianto explained. "When I came back after being ill, his hand had been horribly broken. Spence said Bourke did it, because Joe got upset when he took the camping bed away."

"Son of a bitch is as bad as Carl Branton," Gage muttered heatedly. He then took Joe's hand in a careful, gentle grip. "This won't happen to you again, Joe. We won't let it."

Gage smiled wryly as Joe reached out with his good hand and clumsily patted the top of his head. His amusement shifted to confusion, though, when Joe lifted his bandaged hand towards his face. He looked to Ianto for help, only to be even more startled when Joe spoke softly.

"Better?"

"He's talking!" Gage sputtered in disbelief. "He's actually talking! How'd you pull that off?"

"The credit has to go to Joe. I wasn't even trying to teach him. Oh, and he's waiting for you to kiss his hand better."

Gage coloured a little.

"Sorry, he what...?"

Smiling, Ianto gently took hold of Joe's bandaged hand, and brushed a light kiss over it.

"There we go," he said. "All better."

"Better," Joe echoed contentedly. It was at that moment, that Joe finally saw the bruising on Ianto's face, and his split and swollen lip. His expression changed so fast that Ianto felt a flash of fear – not for himself, but for Gage, whom Ianto suspected that Joe still associated with being beaten and tormented and hurt. He braced himself to get between the two, fully expecting Joe to attack Gage. At the same time, he couldn't help feeling a tiny thrill at the realisation that Joe was feeling protective of him.

He watched, heart in his throat, as Joe tensed visibly. Then, as fast as it appeared, Joe's anger vanished. Before Ianto had a chance to react, or pull away, Joe leaned in and planted a somewhat sloppy kiss right on his mouth. When he leaned back, Ianto was in shock and Gage was trying not to laugh. Suddenly aware that he might have done something wrong, Joe's lower lip took on that telltale tremor once more.

"Better...?" he asked shakily, and this time Ianto picked up on the tangible fear in his voice. Pushing aside his shock, Ianto smiled warmly at his charge.

"Yes, better. Thankyou, cariad."

To emphasize his words, he reached over and drew Joe to him in a comforting embrace. Gage could only watch in astonishment as Joe snuggled in against Ianto, practically purring at the comforting gesture.

"C'mon, then," Ianto murmured. "Before your dinner gets cold."

Gage stood back and watched as Ianto sat with Joe at the table and helped him to use the fork to eat with. The meal itself was simple enough, and yet Joe devoured it with the enthusiasm of someone who had just been presented with their favourite delicacies.

"Wow, he really enjoyed that," Gage mused as he watched Joe chew and swallow the last bite off the plate. Ianto smiled wryly.

"Not a surprise, considering the slop he used to get. But I got rid of all that. Only good, fresh food from now on... What is it, Joe?"

Joe had picked up the plate and was staring at it mournfully. He turned it upside down and shook it, as though by doing so more food would miraculously appear.

"He's still hungry," Gage pointed out.

"I know," Ianto admitted. "I'd like to give him a bigger serving, but it wouldn't be a good idea at the moment. It would only make him sick. He needs to work up slowly towards bigger portions."

"Well, how about a bit of dessert? Would that be okay?"

Ianto looked up in time to see Gage produce a large piece of chocolate cake.

"Where did you have that?" Ianto asked incredulously. Gage grinned.

"What can I say? I have really big pockets."

Ianto chuckled and waved him over.

"Gage has a treat for you, Joe."

As before, Joe's face lit up at the word 'treat', and he looked eagerly to Gage. The other man unwrapped the cake and placed it on a spare napkin. Joe barely hesitated in trying it, much to Gage's interest.

"He knows now that when I say treat, it means something good," Ianto explained, watching fondly as Joe proceeded to demolish the cake. When he finished, both Ianto and Gage were stunned when Joe got up and put his arms around Gage in a brief hug.

"I think that was meant to be thankyou," Ianto murmured as Joe retreated to his bed and turned his attention to the torn blanket, which Ianto suspected had been adopted as a kind of security blanket.

"Yeah, I figured that," Gage murmured, watching Joe curiously. "Um... You do realise he's cuddling a blanket now?"

"I know," Ianto said. "It's the one I bought originally to go with the camping bed. He somehow managed to hang on to it when the bed was taken away from him. He's hardly let go of it since. Gage... Thankyou."

The older man looked puzzled.

"For what?"

"For giving Joe a chance. For treating him like a human being, and not some sort of freak."

"He's got you to thank for that, mate. If it weren't for you, I'd never have grown a set to stand up to Spence. And you were right. He's not an 'it'. I'm just sorry we don't know his real name. I reckon it'd help a bit."

"I know," Ianto agreed. "But I don't have any way of accessing the part of the archives where that information might be. And even if I could, word is that Torchwood Three deliberately never recorded his identity."

"Did Spence tell you how long he's been here?" Gage queried, watching in fascination as Joe rubbed his blanket against his cheek, all the while humming tunelessly to himself.

"A hundred and six years," Ianto confirmed. "I might not have believed it if I hadn't seen him come back to life after Spence shot him."

"Just imagine," Gage said bleakly. "An eternity, trapped in this place. I wouldn't want to be him for anything."

* * *

Gage's words played on Ianto's mind for the rest of the evening, distracting him until Lisa demanded to know what was wrong and, against his better judgement, he told her.

"Wow, it really does bother you, doesn't it?" she murmured, and for the first time Ianto saw genuine concern and sympathy in her eyes. "That they have this guy locked away like that..."

Ianto practically sagged in relief.

"Yes, it does! I hate it, Lisa. I hate that they have him locked up, like some kind of wild animal. He should be free, not trapped in that god-awful place. I just... I wish I could find a way to contact the Doctor."

"Ianto!" Lisa burst out, horrified. Ianto shifted uncomfortably at her reaction.

"I know, he's the enemy and all, but even so... They say Joe used to be a companion of the Doctor. If I could just find him, I could get him to get Joe out of there, and take him right away from Earth, to some place where he'd be safe. He deserves to be safe, Lisa."

Lisa reached out and grasped Ianto's hands in her own. The look on her face was full of anxiety, pleading for him not to do anything foolish.

"All right, Ianto. I get that you care about it... I mean, about him. I get that you care about him. But think about what you're saying! You said it yourself, the Doctor is the enemy of Torchwood!"

Ianto stared grimly at her, and when he spoke it was in a low voice that was full of grim determination.

"Every day, Lisa. Every day I look at Joe, and I see what Torchwood has done to him. The Doctor might be the enemy, but the truth is that I don't know anymore who the good guys are as opposed to the bad guys. If we're meant to be the good guys, then I'm not so sure that I want to be one of them anymore."

* * *

Ianto's evening with Lisa just went downhill after that. Despite her efforts to see his point of view, she was blindly loyal to the Institute and as far as she was concerned, his talk of contacting the Doctor was treated as treasonous.

He knew then that, with the possible exception of Gage, he was on his own. If he was to save Joe, it would have to be without help, of any sort.

* * *

Joe greeted him the next morning with a hug, and another sloppy kiss on the mouth. Ianto had to smile. It was completely sweet and innocent, and he found himself enjoying the emotional connection that was beginning to develop between them. It served to enhance Joe's trust in him, and that was something that Ianto believed would become vital before too long.

"Better," Joe stated after planting the rather wet kiss on Ianto. He was charmingly confident that his innocent gesture really was helping Ianto's split lip.

"Yes, much better," he agreed. "Thankyou, Joe."

And then Joe was suddenly waving his own hand in Ianto's face. The bandages were half pulled off, revealing the pale and undamaged flesh beneath.

"Better!"

Ianto raised an eyebrow and gently took hold of Joe's wrist so that he could finish what Joe had obviously started. Sure enough, his hand appeared to be completely healed. Smiling, Ianto kissed the knuckles softly before releasing the newly-healed hand.

"Yes, it's all better. Come and have breakfast now, and then we'll sit and have a talk."

Happily oblivious to the nervous tension in Ianto's voice, Joe loped over to the table and waited eagerly for his breakfast. That morning, Ianto had provided toast with strawberry jam, and a bowl of cereal complete with a couple of chopped bananas. He was providing fruit with nearly every meal, now. Apples, oranges, bananas, grapes, melons; he loved all of it. Although, Ianto mused as he watched Joe wolf down his breakfast, if he had a favourite, it would probably be apples.

He suspected that had more to do with apples having been his first experience of fresh food after the diet from hell. On a healthier diet now, Ianto could see the beginnings of improvements in Joe – not the least of which, he was far happier for getting fed properly.

Once the meal was finished, Ianto pulled his chair around so they were sitting side by side.

"I want to show you some pictures, Joe. You just look, okay?"

Joe appeared puzzled, but sat patiently regardless. Ianto lifted a small album out of the bag he'd brought in with him, and began to turn the pages. To begin with, it was just a collection of Ianto's family photos. The young man chuckled at the enthusiastic way Joe patted a photo every time he spotted Ianto's image.

"This is my family," Ianto told him, pausing at a photo of Ianto, his parents, siblings and his nieces and nephews. "That's my mam, and my tad, my sister and my brothers..." He looked sideways at Joe. "I bet you had a family once, didn't you? A mother and father? Maybe brothers or sisters? I wonder if you remember them at all?"

He got no response from Joe, verbally or otherwise, and so continued to turn the pages. It was about halfway through the album when the pictures changed.

No longer family snapshots, the pictures were all the images of the infamous Doctor that Torchwood had been chasing for over a century. For the first two pages of somewhat blurred photos, Joe showed no reaction. There was a man with an impossibly long scarf and curly hair... one wearing cricket whites and what looked suspiciously like a stick of celery... Several different images, but none of them garnered a response. When Ianto turned the page again, though, he felt Joe stiffen beside him, his breath catching audibly in a tiny gasp.

Ianto looked down quickly. Joe was staring at a slightly grainy photo of the Doctor whose image had been recorded by an artist for Queen Victoria's private memoirs. Tall, lanky and with a messy shock of blond hair... but it was not the Doctor whose image had Joe's attention. It was the young woman who was with the Doctor that Joe appeared fixated on.

As Ianto watched, Joe's finger stroked the image of the young woman with a tenderness that, just two weeks ago, he wouldn't have believed it was possible. Not a sound came from him, and so it wasn't until large drops spilled onto the page that Ianto realised Joe was crying.

"Hey," Ianto murmured, encouraging Joe to look at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to make you sad. C'mon, now, don't cry."

Once started, though, the tears wouldn't be stopped, and Ianto sighed and drew Joe's head down to rest on his shoulder.

"All right, then," Ianto said, hugging Joe to him. "I've got you. It's a pity you can't tell me what it is that's got you so upset. Poor love..."

Slowly, Joe relaxed against Ianto, and the sobs became more pronounced. Ianto shut his eyes while he continued to murmur nonsense words of comfort.

It was nearly ten minutes before Joe's sobs began eased enough for Ianto to coax Joe over to his bed, and encouraged him to lie down.

"You knew her, didn't you?" Ianto said. "Was she perhaps the who was with you and the Doctor in Cardiff? I bet she was. I wonder if you loved her?"

There was no verbal response from Joe. He only tucked his blanket up under his chin, scrunching it up into a ball that he could cuddle. Ianto sighed again and reached across to stroke his thumb lightly over Joe's cheek, wiping away the tears.

"How did you end up in this god-awful place? If what Sylvia said was right, you were a companion to the Doctor once. What happened? Did he leave you behind? Damn, I wish you could tell me what happened to you."

* * *

It was another hour before Ianto left, smuggling the album out and back to his locker. He hadn't been game enough to let Joe see it again, for fear it would trigger another upset. As it was, he left a rather forlorn-looking figure behind when he left.

For the rest of the day, every time Ianto entered the room, Joe clung to him, clearly didn't want him to leave, and cried miserably when he did. When Ianto left him for the night, he was nearly in tears himself at the sound of Joe's unhappy sobs. He was met just outside by a worried-looking Gage.

"Ianto? What's going on? He's been miserable all day."

Ianto shook his head, not wanting to explain anything where prying ears might overhear.

"You're on duty tonight, aren't you, Gage?" he asked instead.

"Yeah," Gage answered with a weary roll of his eyes. "It's Spence's way of punishing me for telling him to take a flying jump off a cliff. Why? Did you want me to keep an eye on Joe?"

"If you wouldn't mind. I'm just not sure how he's going cope tonight."

Gage clapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Sure, mate. I can do that."

"Thankyou, Gage. And please, don't hesitate to call me if you need me... if Joe needs me."

Gage smiled wryly.

"Oh, don't worry, mate. I won't."

* * *

The first few hours were incident free, and Joe appeared to be sleeping peacefully enough. At first, Gage only checked him via the CCTV. The fourth time he looked, though, Joe was out of bed and curled up in a corner, clutching his blanket and crying miserably. Gage didn't hesitate. He went straight to the room, and let himself in. He was hit by the acrid smell of urine as soon as the door opened, and just a brief glance told him that Joe had wet the bed.

"What's the matter, Joe?" he asked, crouching beside the distraught man. "Did you have a bad dream?"

Two blue eyes that were red and swollen peered at him, and soft, miserable sobs escaped Joe's lips. He clutched his blanket to him with a desperation that was heartbreaking.

"G... Gone," Joe whimpered in a trembling voice, and Gage's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Gone? Who's gone? Where?"

It seemed to be the limit of Joe's communicative abilities, though, and he began to sob loudly, burying his face in the blanket. Gage reached out cautiously, but Joe cringed away from him the moment Gage's fingers brushed his shoulder.

"Okay," Gage murmured. "I'm going to call Ianto, and then we can get you cleaned up. All right?"

Joe's head came up a little, and he peered at Gage quizzically.

"Yan Toe?"

Gage smiled and nodded.

"That's right. Ianto. Just hold on, okay?"

* * *

_tbc..._


	8. Comfort In The Night

Ianto had not long been asleep when his mobile phone rang, dragging him back into reluctant awareness. Groaning, he started to reach for it, only to have Lisa grab his wrist.

"Don't answer it, Ianto. Whoever it is, they can wait until morning, like normal people."

He was almost tempted to do just that. Almost. Ignoring her annoyed huff, he answered the call.

"Jones."

"Ianto, it's Gage..."

Ianto's heart skipped a beat.

"Gage? What's wrong? Is Joe okay?"

"Not exactly, mate. He had a bad nightmare, r something. He's upset, and he doesn't want to let me touch him. Look, I'm really sorry, mate, but I think you're going to have to come in. He only wants you."

"All right, Gage. I'll be there as quickly as I can."

He felt no irritation or frustration; only concern for Joe and anger at himself for leaving Joe alone when he was clearly distressed. He climbed out of bed and was half dressed when Lisa lifted her head from the pillow to gaze at him muzzily.

"Ianto? What are you doing?"

He didn't look at her as he answered, not wanting to see the look of condemnation that he expected to be on her face.

"I have to go in to work."

"What? Why?"

"It's Joe, all right? He's in a bad way."

He risked a glance at her, and... yup, there it was. Disbelief, tinged with disgust and annoyance.

"You can't be serious!" she burst out, sitting up properly. "Damn it, Ianto, it's the middle of the night! Come back to bed! You can deal with it in the morning."

Ianto felt a rush of anger at her casual disregard. He had long since given up hope that she might come round to his perspective, but he had hoped that she might at least respect his feelings. That, apparently, was not to be the case.

"For the last time, he's _not_ an it. And I have to go in. He's my responsibility."

"He is just a freak that Torchwood brings out to poke and prod every now and again," Lisa argued, her own anger getting the better of her. "You're supposed to feed it and keep it clean, Ianto, and that's all! You don't have to go running every time it bloody squawks!"

Ianto stared at her, his eyes dark with an anger that he could no longer be bothered to hide.

"I'm going now, and I would appreciate it very much if you would leave your key behind when you go later."

She gaped at him, barely able to believe what she was hearing.

"Are… Are you kicking me out?"

He was unapologetic.

"I think it would be for the best if we had some time apart. I need to do some serious thinking, Lisa."

She sat stunned in the middle of the bed.

"I don't believe this! You're kicking me out over the Torchwood freak!"

"Don't call him that!" Ianto exploded, and Lisa flinched back, away from him. He stood glaring at her, trembling with ill-suppressed rage, before turning away and pulling on a jumper. "Look… I'm not going to argue with you. Not now. I have to go."

Recovering a little from her own shock, Lisa spoke up again in a slightly shaky voice that held less conviction than she would have perhaps liked.

"Ianto, look at me! Damn it, I'm telling you right now that if I leave, then I won't be coming back. I am not going to settle for second place behind some freak of nature!"

Ianto paused in a moment of consideration, and was mildly curious to realise that the idea of breaking up with Lisa wasn't nearly as painful as he'd imagined it might be.

"Ianto?"

"Just leave your key in the mailbox when you go," he told her quietly. Tears filled Lisa's eyes abruptly, and she spoke bitterly.

"I wish I'd never pushed you into going for that job."

Ianto laughed. He couldn't help it – the irony was simply too much.

"And I'm glad now that you did. It's curious, how fate plays its hand."

He paused a moment longer before shaking his head and walking out without so much as a glance back.

* * *

Gage was waiting anxiously for him when he arrived at Secure Archives.

"I'm sorry, Ianto, but he's in a right state. I didn't know what else to do."

"You did the right thing," Ianto reassured him. "I was wrong, though. I should never have left him alone."

"You couldn't have known what would happen," Gage protested.

"No, but I knew he was upset, and I just left him alone. He's like a child at the moment, Gage. He needs comfort and love when he gets distressed, and I just ignored him. That was unforgivable."

"I wouldn't beat yourself up too much, mate. I think he'll just be happy to see you. Oh, that's another thing. He had a bit of an accident. He… you know… wet the bed."

Ianto swallowed a sigh, not wanting it to seem as though he was frustrated with Joe.

"All right. Gage, do me a favour, and go run a bath for Joe?"

"One step ahead of you. I finished filling the bath just before you got here. It's all ready to go."

"Great, thankyou. I'll bring him along shortly."

"Okay."

Once Gage had gone, Ianto braced himself and went into Joe's room. The moment he stepped inside, Joe wailed loudly and held trembling hands out to the young man. Ianto went to him without hesitation, and crouched down to hug his distraught charge.

"It's all right," Ianto soothed. "Hush, now."

Gradually, the sobs quietened until all Ianto could hear was the soft hitching of breath as Joe cuddled in against him, seeking whatever comfort he could get. Ianto continued to hold him, his own heart breaking in response to Joe's distress and misery.

"Right," he murmured, peering down at Joe's tear-streaked face and puffy, red-rimmed eyes. "What's this all about, now?"

He really didn't expect an answer, and was astonished when Joe answered falteringly.

"Bad dream."

Shaking off his surprise, Ianto gently thumbed away a tear that rolled down Joe's cheek.

"You had a nightmare, did you?" he asked, and Joe nodded miserably. Ianto barely withheld a smile, as the response proved that Joe did understand when being spoken to; perhaps more than on just a basic, rudimentary level. He decided to see how far he could actually get with him.

"Was it about those pictures I showed you yesterday? The picture of that girl?"

Another nod, this time more tentative, and Ianto sighed softly. He couldn't know for certain whether Joe was nodding in deliberate response, or if he was nodding simply because he thought that was what Ianto expected. Ianto rubbed his back gently.

"I'm sorry, Joe. I didn't mean to upset you with those photos. All right, then. Let's get you up. Gage has run a bath for you, so we can get you cleaned up."

And then, seemingly for the first time, Joe noticed the mess he'd made of his bed and his pyjama bottoms, and his face fell once more.

"Mess," he whimpered, and looked as though he was about to cry again. Ianto squeezed his hand lightly.

"Hey, new rule. No more tears about silly things like this. It's all right, Joe. I'm not mad at you. It's all right."

The tearful gaze retreated somewhat, and Joe managed a somewhat shaky smile. Ianto smiled back in return.

"That's better. Okay, let's go and see if Gage remembered to add bubbles."  
It was obviously the magic word. Joe's face lit up like a beacon.

"Bubbles!" Joe echoed happily, and let Ianto guide him to the bathroom.

* * *

Minutes later, Joe sat happily in a steaming hot bubble bath while Ianto rinsed the saturated pyjama bottoms in a nearby sink.

"Any idea what that was all about?" Gage wondered.

"I have an idea," Ianto murmured. "Can't talk here, though."

"Yeah, you can. I've got the security cameras on a loop. I sorted it before you even got here. Figured Joe would be needing a bath, and I didn't want Spence saying you'd used one of Joe's bath privileges for the week. So as long as we're careful to clean up, no one will ever know we were in here."  
"Gage, you're brilliant," Ianto praised him. "But hoe would you even have a loop of film to play?"

At that, Gage smiled cagily.

"Firstly, you don't think that the archive stacks is the only place where Carl has his little trysts, do you? And secondly, how do you think I knew about it?"

Ianto laughed softly before becoming serious again.

"I showed him pictures, Gage."

"Of what?"

"Not what. Who. I showed him pictures of the Doctor."

Gage sucked in a sharp breath.

"There was a rumour a while back that he used to be a companion of the Doctor, but I was never sure how much validity it had. So, he recognised one of the pictures, then?"

"Yes," Ianto confirmed, "but not of the Doctor. There was a picture of a girl. Blonde, maybe eighteen or nineteen. It was her that he recognised and got upset over."

"Uh, Ianto… When I went in to see to Joe initially, before I called you, he said something. He said 'gone'."

Surprise filled Ianto's face.

"That's not a word he's gotten from us. I wonder…"

"What?"

"I wonder if he was left behind by her and the Doctor."

Gage snorted.

"If that's the truth, then I wouldn't mind taking a shot at the Doctor myself. How anyone could abandon a person to this sort of existence is beyond me. The Doctor must be one cruel son of a bitch."

"He might not know about this," Ianto murmured, while at the same time wondering why he was defending someone that he didn't know a thing about. He glanced around surreptitiously, as though suddenly concerned that Joe might be listening in to their conversation, but Joe was oblivious to them. He'd just discovered that the bubbles were fun to scoop up and blow into the air, and he was currently thoroughly engrossed in doing just that.

Ianto had to smile faintly, his heart warmed by the innocent joy that Joe was displaying. At the same time, though, he couldn't help but feel a moment of intense sadness, that a grown man could be reduced to this.

"Assuming you're right," Gage said, drawing him back to reality, "what are you planning to do?"

Grim determination filled Ianto's face.

"I'm going to find the Doctor."

Gage shut his eyes.

"I was afraid you were going to say that. Ianto, mate, you are walking on dangerous ground here."

"You think I don't know that? I have to try, Gage, for Joe's sake. I think the Doctor might be the only way to get Joe out of here, and I've only got a limited time frame to do it. Yvonne Hartman gave me six months, and then they plan to start experimenting on him again. I can't let that happen. I have to get Joe out of here."

"All right," Gage conceded. "Just tell me one thing. You say you think Joe was abandoned by the Doctor. Assuming that's true, what makes you think that he'll even want to help Joe?"

Ianto's face darkened at the mere possibility that the mysterious Doctor might refuse to help.

"If I find him, and he won't help me to save Joe, then I swear I'll turn him over to Hartman myself." He glanced once more at Joe, who was happily oblivious to the sudden tension in the room. "He has to help. He has to. I have to do this, Gage. I have to find him."

"No, mate," Gage corrected him quietly. "We have to find him."

* * *

It took them another half hour to coax Joe out of the bath, and by then it seemed that any remnants of his nightmare had been washed away. While Ianto helped him to dry off and change into clean pyjamas, Gage stripped and remade the bed. Both men then watched with fond smiles as Joe crawled in under the covers and tucked his wadded up blanket under his chin once more.

"You know, I watch him do that, and I keep wanting to bring a teddy bear in for him," Gage said with a chuckle. Ianto smiled as he crouched down and tucked the blankets in around Joe's shoulders.

"I think we'll let him keep a little dignity, thankyou."

Gage laughed.

"Right, because cuddling a blankie isn't demeaning at all."

"It was the first thing I gave him to keep, and he fought to hold onto it when Spence's lackeys took everything else away. No, he can cling to it for as long as he needs to." Ianto leaned in close and pressed a gentle kiss to Joe's forehead. "Thankyou for helping us tonight, Gage. I think we'll be okay now."

"You're staying?"

Gage couldn't find it in himself to be surprised. He'd had a suspicion that Ianto would stay for the rest of the night.

"Yes. I think Joe could use the company, and frankly, so could I."

"I'll go get the cot from the rec room, then."

Ianto was barely aware of Gage leaving.

"We need help, Joe," he whispered. "I don't know how to reach the Doctor, but there must be someone out there who does. I'm going to find them for you." He caressed Joe's face, causing the other man to hum softly in contentment. Ianto smiled sadly. "You like being touched, don't you? Just one more thing they took from you."

Gage returned with the cot a few minutes later, and they soon had it set up beside Joe's bed.

"Okay, I'll give you a call about an hour before Spence is due in. And don't worry about the CCTV footage. It's going to be accidentally deleted when I trip over and land on the wrong button."

"Thankyou, Gage," Ianto said gratefully.

"Thankyou, Gage."

Both Gage and Ianto looked down at Joe in surprise. It was unclear whether he understood what he'd just said, or whether he was simply mimicking Ianto, but Gage decided to take it at face value.

"You're welcome, Joe," he told him warmly. "Goodnight, you two."

Then they were alone.

"All right, you," Ianto said fondly. "Time to sleep, and no more bad dreams, okay?"

He felt a hand close around his own, and looked down to see Joe had his hand in a firm hold. It didn't take much effort to understand what Joe wanted, but was incapable of vocalising.

"It's okay," Ianto told him. "I'm not going anywhere, cariad. I'm staying right here with you."

He made no attempt to extricate his hand, and instead took great pleasure in watching Joe slide into the peacefulness of sleep, soothed by the physical contact. Lying on the cot, with his hand securely in Joe's, it wasn't long before Ianto joined him in slumber.

* * *

Gage woke him the next morning in good time to pack away the cot bed, and make it seem that Joe had spent an undisturbed night alone. By the time they were done, there was still a good forty minutes before any of their colleagues were due in, and Ianto took the opportunity to shower in the bathroom. He was surprised to come back to find Joe just finishing off a stack of pancakes, complete with strawberries, bananas and maple syrup. Gage sat beside him, reading to him from a brightly illustrated book.

Ianto paused in the doorway, touched by the sight of Gage interacting so freely and easily with Joe.

"Hope you don't mind," Gage said with a wry smile. "I thought I'd make pancakes for him… although, I'm not sure what he's enjoying more, the pancakes or the fruit."

Ianto laughed and ruffled Joe's hair affectionately as he joined them.

"He does love his fruit. Don't you, Joe?"

"Fruit," Joe echoed cheerfully, and both Ianto and Gage laughed out loud as he lifted the empty plate and licked the remnants of syrup off the surface.

"What are you reading to him?" Ianto asked curiously as he gently took the plate off Joe and used a napkin to wipe his mouth.

"It's a book of old Irish folk tales. My gran gave it to me when I was little more than a baby, and my dad used to read to me from it every night when I was a boy. I don't know how much of it Joe really understands, but he seems to like listening."

"And you just happened to have it on you?" Ianto asked wryly. Gage smiled sheepishly.

"I brought it in a few days ago. I was going to lend it to you for Joe, but… Well, he got a little upset when you went off to shower, so I thought I'd give it a try, and see if distracted him. I guess it worked, because he really settled down."

"Well, thankyou. I'll have to bring some books in to read to him… and maybe some puzzles to keep him occupied." Ianto looked around the room with a frown. "This room is so bloody awful. I wonder if we can brighten it up at all?"

"One step at a time," Gage advised him lightly. "We try to do too much, too quickly, and you know Spence will take it out on Joe." He paused, glancing at his watch. "Speaking of which, he'll be arriving any minute. I'd better get out of here."

"The CCTV footage…?"

Gage pressed a finger to his lips, and winked. He then ruffled Joe's hair and grinned at the resulting giggle.

"Be good, Joe, and I'll try to come back later to read some more to you, okay?"

"Okay," Joe said pleasantly as he returned his attention to his blanket. Gage watched him for a moment before looking back at Ianto.

"He doesn't really know what he's saying, does he? He's just copying us."

"To a degree," Ianto admitted. "I don't think he has a comprehensive understanding of the words he's using, but he understands enough to use them in their right context. He knows he'll get my attention by using my name. He understands the word treat means something good, but at the moment he only equates it with food. Really, he's at the mental and emotional level of a two year-old. This is Torchwood's legacy, Gage. It took a man who had once travelled with the Doctor, and probably knew more about the universe than you and I will ever know, and damaged him so badly that he may never recover. He's effectively been brain damaged back to infancy, Gage."

"I know," Gage whispered sadly. "I know."

* * *

_tbc..._


	9. The First Step To Salvation

_Two and a half months later  
_  
It amused Ianto no end that slowly, the other workers in Secure Archives were beginning to see Joe in a new light. With the obvious exceptions of Robin Spence, Jon Bourke and Carl Branton, the others were now calling Joe by name whenever he came up for discussion, rather than simply referring to him as 'the freak'. In addition, Ianto was more and more frequently finding himself praised by the others for the ways in which he had improved Joe's living conditions.

Despite the changing attitudes, though, aside from himself, Gage was the only other person who could walk safely into Joe's room, and not feel the need to carry a stun stick for protection. He and Gage were the only two that Joe never snarled at when they came to see him. In fact, whenever either one of them walked in, Joe had taken to greeting them with a rib-cracking bear hug and a loud, wet kiss on the lips.

The latter thoroughly embarrassed them both, especially once word got around Secure Archives, but neither wanted to do anything to dissuade Joe. They agreed early on that they preferred him happy and exuberant rather than cowering and miserable, and so they simply put up with it and the ribbing from their colleagues that accompanied it.

As the days, and subsequent weeks, slipped by, Ianto found himself wondering just what kind of person Joe had been before Torchwood got hold of him. As hard as it was to imagine, he suspected Joe had probably been an extreme extrovert, for every so often he gave them all glimpses of a personality that was completely uninhibited by shame or embarrassment.

A stand-out incident, and probably the funniest in hindsight, had taken place on one of Joe's designated bath days. It hadn't taken Joe long to get to know that particular routine, and he quickly came to look forward to that privilege. He soon got to know when to expect Ianto, and more often than not Ianto would walk in to find Joe hovering by the door, eager to get to the bathroom and to his 'bubbles'.

That was the other semi-amusing point. Ianto had made the mistake of taking Joe into the bathroom one day when he hadn't put any bubble bath formula into the water. Joe had taken one look at the clear water, sat down in the middle of the floor and pouted until Ianto added the formula. Ianto had taken care thereafter not to forget again.

On the day in question, however, Ianto had walked in to find Joe ready for his bath in more than one sense of the word. He'd stripped off entirely and was standing there stark naked, waiting eagerly for Ianto to take him for his bath.

Despite Ianto's best efforts at persuasion, Joe had refused to get dressed again for the short trip to the bathroom. In the end, a very red-faced Ianto had been forced to lead a very happy, oblivious and naked Joe down the corridor. Someone must have spotted them on the CCTV, because all of the female employees of Secure Archives had managed to be there to witness the display, much to Ianto's chagrin.

From that day on, Ianto had been careful to carry a robe with him when he went to collect Joe for his bath. He could have sworn that Joe had actually been pleased with himself over that little performance, but he was too busy trying to suppress his own personal amusement to chastise his charge.

Over the weeks, Joe's comprehension slowly improved, though he remained stubbornly silent, uttering only the occasional word. Though he seemed to use them in their right context, neither he nor Gage were able to be sure whether Joe was just echoing words that he heard others used. Ultimately, Ianto had no way of knowing whether the lack of improvement in vocabulary and speech was a deliberate refusal on Joe's part, or whether his mind really was so badly damaged that he was completely incapable of forming coherent sentences.

There were times, however brief and infrequent, that Ianto would catch Joe watching him, and he would see something in those pale blue eyes beyond the usual, innocent gaze. It was always just a fleeting glimpse, but it gave Ianto hope that perhaps Joe might one day be rehabilitated. Of course, Ianto mused sadly as he settled Joe into bed for the night, there had to be a rescue before there could be any thoughts of rehabilitation.

It was nearly three months since Ianto had officially been instructed to work with Joe. In some ways he'd improved, but in others he was still the same as before – almost animalistic in nature. He liked Gage and would do most things the other man asked. He especially seemed to enjoy it when Gage came and read to him. Whether he really comprehended the stories or not, they didn't know, but Gage was adept at reading with emotion and enthusiasm, and Joe would listen entranced.

Gage, however, couldn't hold a candle to Ianto. Joe adored him, and seemed to be willing to do whatever Ianto wanted him to do, and that in itself worried Ianto deeply.

He recalled only too clearly the Director's instructions about preparing Joe for new tests, and he knew instinctively that she didn't give a damn whether Joe had an IQ of 2, or 200. All she wanted was for him to be compliant in her loathsome tests, and Joe's compliance to Ianto was exactly what she was hoping for.

He had just three months left to find the Doctor and affect a rescue.

Once Joe was asleep, Ianto packed away the puzzles they'd been working on together that evening. Most were simple children's puzzles, but they did wonders for helping to improve Joe's physical coordination. That was something he was rather sorely lacking. More than that, though, the puzzles went a long way to occupying Joe's mind throughout the long days, and alleviating many hours of boredom. Ianto, personally, was impressed by the perseverance that Joe displayed in finishing some of the harder puzzles, even when some took most of the day to complete.

After checking Joe one last time to satisfy himself that he was, indeed, asleep, Ianto stepped out to find Gage waiting for him just outside the room.

"Anything wrong?" Ianto queried, and Gage answered with a casual shake of his head.

"No, not at all. Joe settled in for the night?"

"Mm, still cuddling that blanket of his. I tried to talk him into letting me take it so I could wash it, but he wouldn't let go of it. Damned thing is filthy, but he keeps cuddling up to it every night, and insists on carrying it with him every day."

Gage chuckled.

"He's completely attached to it. Hardly surprising."

Ianto raised an eyebrow quizzically as they walked together to the locker rooms.

"Oh?"

"Well, you said it yourself, didn't you? It's the first thing you gave him, and he fought to hang on to it. In the whole time he's been here, all anyone ever gave him was pain. You were the first person to treat him differently, to treat him better. That blanket is a physical reminder to him that things are better now, thanks to you."

Ianto fell quiet, immersed in thought over that. He had to concede that Gage was right.

They reached the locker rooms, and Gage clapped Ianto lightly on the shoulder.

"By the way, I ran into Sylvia from General Archives at lunchtime. She asked me to remind you about meeting her for dinner tonight. She said she'll be waiting for you in the lobby."

Ianto blinked, confused. He had no plans to meet Sylvia that night. He opened his mouth to say as much when he got a good look at the expression on Gage's face. The other man's eyes were wide, and his expression practically begged Ianto not to argue.

Shaking off his confusion, Ianto spoke in what he hoped was a natural tone of voice.

"Right. Thanks for the reminder. I'd nearly forgotten."

Gage winked at him before strolling out of the room again. Shaking his head, Ianto gathered his things and hurried to meet Sylvia.

* * *

"Thanks for getting Gage to remind me about tonight," Ianto told Sylvia cheerfully as he joined her. "I've been so busy, I'd forgotten all about it."

She linked her arm through his, and they headed out together.

"I thought you might. Not to worry, though. I made all the arrangements, so you don't need to worry at all."

Ianto kept smiling until they were well outside the Torchwood Tower, and safely in Sylvia's car.

"What's going on?" he asked tensely, all pleasantness evaporating from his features. "Where are we going, Sylvia?"

"I have a friend," Sylvia answered. "A friend who used to work for UNIT. He's long retired now, but he was fairly high up in the UNIT hierarchy, and he knows... well, he knows a lot. I spoke to him a couple of days ago about your... problem."

Ianto stiffened, panic starting to claw at his insides.

"You mean you told him about Joe? Sylvia..."

"Ianto, honey, he already knew. According to my friend, UNIT has known about Joe for years, and the only reason they haven't tried to take custody of him is because they don't have the means to properly contain him."

Ianto felt his stomach drop unpleasantly. In the event that his efforts to contact the Doctor failed, his next option had been to go to UNIT. All of a sudden, UNIT did not appear to be any better than Torchwood.

"We can't involve UNIT, sweetheart," Sylvia said quietly. "They'll just do exactly the same to the poor love as Torchwood has done."

"But you have involved them!" Ianto protested. "If they know we're trying to find the Doctor to get Joe out of there, they might decide they want him themselves!"

"Ianto, relax," Sylvia told him firmly. "I told you, Alistair is retired, and for the record, he never agreed with what Torchwood did to Joe. Anyway, he won't involved himself now. What he did do, though, was pass on a name. Someone who might be able to help you, love. Someone who apparently used to travel with the Doctor."

"Someone who can contact him?" Ianto asked, his heart pounding all of a sudden.

"I don't know, but it's a start, sweetheart. And if you're certain that you want to contact the Doctor, then you need to start somewhere."

He had to agree there. His own inquiries had so far come to nothing, and time was starting to run painfully short. He was not in a position where he could afford to brush off any offer of help, and he trusted Sylvia to do right by both him and Joe.

"Who are we going to see?"

"Her name is Sarah Jane Smith."

"I don't know that name," Ianto admitted.

"Neither do I, love, but Alistair seemed confident that we could trust her."

Ianto stared out at the passing scenery, his expression troubled.

"This is risky, Sylvia. If anyone at Torchwood finds out..."

"Ianto, if you really want to get Joe out of there, then taking risks is just part and parcel of the whole deal."

"I know. I'm just scared, Sylvia. I'm terrified that I'll fail him."

She didn't respond to that, understanding only too well that particular fear.

* * *

Sarah Jane Smith lived in a comfortably large house on Bannerman Road. It was dark by the time they got there, and Ianto's nerves were jumping all over the place as they approached the front door.

"Do you think she knows we're coming?" Ianto wondered.

"Probably not," Sylvia answered. "Just be careful, and don't mention Torchwood until we have to."

The door swung open a moment later, and a mature-looking woman peered out at them. She was quite beautiful in an understated way, Ianto thought distantly, but it wasn't her beauty that caught his attention. It was the look in her eyes – the look of someone who had seen and experienced far more than any human being was ever meant to. It was, he realised with a quiet thrill, the very same look he had seen in Joe's eyes on those rare few occasions when Joe had moments of near lucidity.

"Can I help you?" she asked with the icy politeness of someone who thought they might be dealing with a salesman, or a religious fanatic.

"Miss Smith," Sylvia said quietly, "we were told to come and see you by the Brigadier. We need your help."

"With what?"

"Contacting the Doctor."

After a split second's hesitation, she stepped to the side, and ushered them into the house.

* * *

"All right," Sarah Jane said grimly once they were safely inside. "Who are you, and why do you want to find the Doctor?"

Sylvia looked to Ianto at that.

"Go ahead, sweetheart. This is your show."

Ianto drew in an unsteady breath and spoke.

"My name is Ianto Jones, Ma'am, and I have a friend who is in a lot of trouble. I believe the Doctor is the only one who can save him."

Sarah Jane frowned as she put the kettle on the stove.

"This friend of yours, Mr Jones. What sort of trouble is he in?"

"He's being held prisoner, Ma'am. The people who have him want to experiment on him, and I want to get him out of there before that happens."

"Why don't you simply contact the police?"

"Because the situation is somewhat beyond the norm. My friend... He's not exactly a pure, home-grown human, for want of a better phrase."

"Alien?" Sarah Jane queried, but Ianto shook his head.

"No, he's not alien. At least, not that I believe. He is human... or rather, he used to be. It's a little difficult to explain, but basically, the people who have him are beyond the reach of the police, the Government... Practically everyone who might otherwise have been able to help, and it's an extremely secretive organisation."

Slowly, she turned back to stare at him.

"How is it that you know all about this situation, if the company you're talking about is so powerful and secretive?"

Ianto squirmed a little in discomfort.

"Because I... um... work for them."

Sarah Jane stared at him for several long seconds, and her face grew darker with every moment that slipped by. When she finally spoke, there was a threat in her voice that neither Ianto nor Sylvia dared to ignore.

"Get out. Both of you, out! Now!"

Ianto stumbled awkwardly to his feet, feeling a sickening rush of panic.

"Miss Smith, please..."

"You're Torchwood, aren't you? Well, you can just get out! I warned you lot before, you won't use me to get to the Doctor!"

Ianto looked to Sylvia in desperation, terrified that his one chance to find the Doctor was slipping through his fingers. The older woman patted his arm reassuringly, and calmly pulled an envelope from her bag, emptying the meagre contents onto the table.

"What is this?" Sarah Jane asked tensely. Sylvia pushed one of the photos towards her.

"Yes, Miss Smith, we are Torchwood employees, but if the Torchwood hierarchy knew we were here, we'd probably both be executed. Please, all we ask is that you hear us out. If then you want to throw us out, fine. But at least listen first."

Sarah Jane stared at them, her lips pressed tightly together. Finally, she sat, although noticeably on the edge of her seat – ready to move at a moment's notice, Ianto realised ruefully.

"All right, then. Talk."

Sylvia motioned to the photo she'd pushed across the table.

"We know the Doctor has had several different appearances over time, and the man in the left of that photo is one such appearance."

Sarah Jane glanced at the photo with practised indifference.

"I wouldn't know. I don't recognise him."

"Well, what about the girl?" Ianto asked anxiously. "Do you know who she is?"

"I may do," she conceded after sparing the photo another look. "But you're going to have to give me a damned good reason to tell you."

Ianto reached across and pointed to the image of Joe in the photo. He looked so different there compared to the man that he had been caring for over the last few months. In the photo, he looked confident and outgoing... He looked happy.

"This man here, he's the one we've come to see you because of. I call him Joe, though that's because I don't know his real name. No one does. He's a prisoner inside Torchwood Tower, Miss Smith, and he's been there for a very long time. Now, we know he used to travel with the Doctor, but we don't know anything more about him beyond that."

"He refused to talk?" Sarah Jane mused, feeling a quiet respect given that she had a fair idea of what Torchwood's methods of persuasion could be like. Ianto's next words, though, just about knocked the breath out of her.

"No, Ma'am, he can't talk. Not very well, at least. The way Torchwood has treated him over the years has turned him virtually into a child. He can't communicate very well, and he has only a very simple comprehension of what goes on around him."

"Up until three months ago, this was how Joe was treated," Sylvia said, and passed the next photo to Sarah Jane.

"Oh my god," Sarah Jane whispered in horror at the image of the man chained, battered, bruised and filthy dirty in the little room. Her first instinct was to scream at them both for letting something like this happen, but some logic prevailed. She looked up sharply.

"You said, 'up to three months ago'. What happened three months ago?"

Sylvia smiled, and patted her young companion's hand.

"Three months ago, Ianto transferred to Secure Archives. He was given the task of looking after Joe, and pretty soon that turned into this."

She handed a third picture over, and Sarah Jane found herself looking at a CCTV image that was vastly different from the previous photo. Joe was sitting on his bed, and all visible signs of abuse were gone. He was clean, healthier-looking and, by all appearances, much happier.

"I've been looking after Joe as best as I can," Ianto went on, "but in three months' time, the Director wants to start experimenting on him again. I can't let that happen, Miss Smith. I have to get him out of there."

Sarah Jane stared wordlessly at the pictures in front of her. It was certainly true that the Doctor would despise this, and she was sure he would be willing to do whatever he could to get the poor man out of there. However, there was one glaring problem.

"I can't reach him," she admitted, feeling her heart ache at the dismay on the young man's face.

"What do you mean?" Ianto asked. "You must be able to!"

"I'm sorry, but I just can't help you," she said softly. "I have no way to contact the Doctor."

Ianto slumped back, his face ashen.

"But I can't save him on my own. I need help..."

The tears came before he could stop them, and he buried his face in his hands in misery.

"Ianto, it's all right," Sylvia murmured.

"No, it's not. I promised him, Sylvia. I promised I'd get help, that I'd find someone who could save him. Now they're going to start experimenting on him again, and all the progress he's made will be ruined..."

Sarah Jane watched the scene in front of her with regret before returning her gaze to the original photo. It was true, she didn't recognise that particular regeneration, but at the same time she didn't doubt it was him. The way he held Rose's hand was a dead giveaway, even if she hadn't recognised the aura of other-worldly authority that surrounded him.

There were two others in the picture – the man who was apparently now a prisoner of Torchwood, and the young man that she recognised as Mickey Smith. Looking closer she could just make out what looked like the Cardiff Millennium Centre.

"When was this taken?" she asked.

"A little over ten months ago," Sylvia answered. "Just before that mysterious earthquake that nearly cracked open Roald Dahl Plass in Cardiff. In fact, I think it was taken that very morning."

Sarah Jane smiled wryly. She knew that date well. She'd investigated it on the quiet after hearing rumours that the Mayor of Cardiff wasn't quite human.

"Trouble does seem to follow him around, and unfortunately it sometimes rubs off on his companions. Can I ask, what did your Joe do that brought him to Torchwood's attention?"

Sylvia and Ianto exchanged glances before Ianto spoke.

"I think it was most likely his inability to stay dead after being killed. I'm fairly sure they didn't know he was associated with the Doctor before they captured him."

Sarah Jane's eyes went wide.

"He can't die?"

Ianto was quick to correct her.

"Yes, he can. He just doesn't stay dead. We don't know if he only has a limited number of resurrections available, or if he really is truly immortal."

A scowl made its way onto Sarah Jane's face.

"And I'll bet they've been exhaustive in their testing of him. Am I right?"

"Everything except decapitation," Ianto said bitterly, recalling Gage's words on his first day with Secure Archives.

"We can't allow this to continue," Sarah Jane said finally. "The Doctor needs to know."

Ianto looked up at her, puzzled but hopeful.

"But I thought you couldn't contact him?"

"I can't, but there might be someone who can." She touched the young woman's image in the photo. "Her name is Rose. Don't ask for her last name, because I won't give it to you. I believe you're both genuine, but you're still Torchwood."

"We understand," Ianto murmured, and Sylvia agreed. Satisfied, Sarah Jane went on quickly.

"As far as I know, Rose is still travelling with the Doctor. If I can track down her mother, then she might be able to reach them."

"Do you really think he'd be willing to help?" Ianto asked, and Sarah Jane gave him an odd look.

"You think he wouldn't want to?"

"I don't know," Ianto admitted. "All I know is that I showed him a picture a couple of months ago of the Doctor and that girl..."

"Rose?"

"Right. And he got upset. Very upset."

"Define 'upset'."

"He cried when I left him alone, and had severe nightmares. When we asked him about them, all he could say was 'gone'."

"They left him behind," Sarah Jane murmured, feeling a touch of sympathy as she recalled being left behind herself. Ianto nodded.

"That's what I believe. I think that whatever happened to make Joe the way he is now happened when he was with the Doctor, and I also believe the Doctor abandoned him."

Sarah Jane stared down at the photos for a long moment before asking a question that she wasn't entirely sure she wanted an answer to.

"How long as your Joe been a prisoner of Torchwood, Mr Jones?"

Ianto looked thoroughly ill as he replied.

"Over a hundred years, Ma'am. He needs to be gotten out of there, and I only have three months to do it in."

"I'll do what I can to help you," Sarah Jane promised sincerely. "But you need to leave it with me. There's nothing more you can do that won't put all of us at risk."

"What are you going to do?" Sylvia wondered.

"I can't give you any details, and you're going to have to be patient. It may take time. Just go back to your regular lives and go about your days as normal. If I succeed, I'll contact you through the Brigadier." She paused, eyeing them both critically. "No following me, or spying on me, and I mean that. If I get even the slightest inkling that I'm being tracked by Torchwood, I promise you that I'll do my best to make sure you never find the Doctor. Am I understood?"

Both Ianto and Sylvia nodded in wordless compliance.  
Satisfied with their response, Sarah Jane picked up the more recent picture of Joe.

"I'll hang on to this, if you don't mind. And now, if you'll excuse me, it's getting rather late."

Ianto stood up quickly, feeling almost light-headed with relief. He honestly felt as though he'd just taken his first real step towards finding the Doctor.

"Thankyou," he told her softly. "Thankyou so much."

Sarah Jane regarded him sadly.

"It's a shame you work for Torchwood, young man. You're better than that."

Ianto smiled equally sadly, and motioned to the picture in her hand.

"For his sake, Ma'am, I'm glad that I do work for Torchwood."

She reached up and patted his cheek in a very maternal gesture.

"For his sake, so am I. But be very careful. You're treading on a deadly path."

Ianto's breath caught. He knew that, only too well.

* * *

_tbc..._


	10. New Allies

Ianto didn't sleep well that night. He was consumed with anxiety over the possibility that the Doctor could turn up at any given moment to rescue Joe. Even though logically he knew that it would take time, the mere thought of finally seeing Joe rescued from the hell of his existence left him in a thorough state of nervousness. He wanted to get Joe out of Torchwood, and the sooner that could happen, the better.

Tired but hopeful, Ianto headed into work the next morning, and walked into chaos. He was greeted by Enid as he walked into Secure Archives, and was immediately taken aback by the fright that showed on her face.

"Ianto, thank God! You have to come, quick! It's Joe! We think he's been poisoned…"

Ianto broke into a run, barely waiting for her to finish speaking.

"How?" he demanded as he ran.

"It was Gage…"

Ianto's blood turned to ice. Gage…? No, it couldn't possibly be… He wouldn't... He reached Joe's room, and pushed past the gathering of employees to get inside.

Gage was there, sitting on the bed with Joe's head resting on his lap. Joe was crying pitifully as Gage stroked his hair, murmuring soothing words. There was an acrid stink of vomit in the air that turned Ianto's stomach.

"What happened?" he asked hoarsely as he crouched down to get a good look at Joe.

"It was in the milk," Gage answered. Ianto glanced up at him at the sound of his croaky, strangled voice, and felt his heart clench at the sight of his friend's red-rimmed eyes. "Someone got into the fridge overnight and poisoned his milk, but I didn't realise it until it was too late."

"How much did he drink?" Ianto asked. He took Joe's hand in his own, gutted by the agony in those beautiful blue eyes.

"Half a glass… but Ianto, I made him pancakes this morning. I used nearly two cups of milk in the mixture." Gage shook his head. "He started throwing up before he was even halfway through."

Ianto returned his attention to Joe, taking in his pallid features, glassy eyes, the tremors and the whimpers of pain. He knew, beyond a doubt, that Joe was dying, and right then it was little consolation that he would come back to life. The death he would suffer in the meantime was going to be prolonged and painful.

Whoever had done this — and Ianto had three suspects in mind already — had taken cruel advantage of one of the few simple joys that Joe got, and that was his food.

"Ianto, here."

He looked up as one of the other archivists placed a bowl of water on the floor beside him, complete with a wash cloth. He managed a grateful smile, and immediately began to rub the cloth gently over Joe's feverish skin.

"Is there anything else we can do?" Tristan Granger asked softly, and Ianto was again taken aback by the genuine concern in the other man's voice. For a long moment, he had to struggle to clear his mind, and get his mouth working again.

"The fridge," he said finally. "It'll have to be emptied out completely. No telling what else they might have contaminated."

"You want us to find Carl and Jon, and beat the shit out of them, too?" Tomas Dyer asked flatly. "Because we will, quite cheerfully. Fucking bastards had no right to do this to him."

"No," Ianto whispered hoarsely. "No… Please don't. Just the fridge. We… We'll worry about Jon and Carl later."

"Yan toe," Joe whimpered, reaching out to Ianto with a trembling hand. Ianto took it, tears filling his own eyes as he witnessed Joe's distress. "Better…?"

"I'm sorry, Joe," Ianto said. "I'm so sorry, cariad. I can't make this better."

Joe shut his eyes and cried, clutching his stomach in agony.

"There is one way to fix him," Gage said miserably, "but I can't stomach the thought of killing him. Not even as an act of mercy."

Ianto stroked his fingers over Joe's forehead and temple. It was an abominable choice — to risk Joe's trust in him by killing him to make him better, or to simply do nothing and let him suffer a slow, agonising death. And suddenly, Ianto knew why Bourke and Branton had done what they did.

Ianto knew that death was inevitable now. Whatever he chose to do, Joe was going to have to suffer the pain and trauma of dying and reviving. If he chose to kill Joe, there was a strong chance it would destroy Joe's trust in him. Equally, doing nothing and letting him die painfully could quite conceivably have the same result. Either way, he faced losing the bond with Joe that he had worked so hard to develop.

Joe convulsed suddenly and tumbled off the bed, landing heavily on the floor with a painful thud. He retched violently, and a mixture of blood and vomit erupted from his mouth.

"Bloody hell, he's bleeding internally," Gage groaned. "What the fuck did they put in the milk?"

"I have to do it," Ianto whispered in devastation. "I'm going to have to kill him. I can't just sit back and let him suffer like this."

"You do that, and it could wreck his trust in you," Gage warned.

"What else am I supposed to do?" Ianto exploded, tears flooding his eyes. "Look at him, Gage! I can't let him suffer like this!"

Silence fell between the two men, and the tension that hung in the air was almost palpable.

"Ianto," Tristan spoke up suddenly, breaking the deadlock between them, "Spence wants you in his office, right now. You too, Gage."

Incredulity filled Ianto's face, and he gave a determined shake of his head.

"No. We're not leaving Joe. He can just bloody wait."

"He's got the Director there, Ianto. You can't just let her wait. And besides, I overheard a bit of what they were talking about. I heard Hartman saying she wanted to move Joe to Torchwood's research facility in Glasgow."

Rage mixed with panic washed over Ianto, but still he hesitated. Enid walked over, then, and knelt by Joe's head.

"Go on, and be back as quick as you can. We'll look after Joe, I promise."

Sick with anger and distress, Ianto leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to Joe's temple.

"I'll be right back, I promise."

"Yan toe," Joe whimpered, but it was all he could manage before the pain became too much again, and he tried once more to curl in on himself.

"C'mon," Gage said angrily. "Let's go and tell Spence to shove it up his arse, so we can get back here." He paused to follow Ianto's lead, and leant down to kiss Joe tenderly on the forehead. "We'll be back in a minute, Joe."

They hurried out together, each man compiling in their own minds the names they planned on calling Spence. They were barely ten feet from Joe's room, though, when the horrifying noise of a gun being fired echoed down the corridor. Exchanging looks, they ran back to find Tomas standing over Joe with his gun in his hand. Joe was dead, with a single, clean bullet wound to his temple.

"What have you done?" Ianto choked out as he collapsed to the floor beside Joe. Tomas looked shaken as he stepped away and holstered his gun.

"I did what I had to do. What you couldn't bring yourself to do. He was going to die, Ianto. A bullet to the head was a hell of a lot more merciful than letting the poison do the job."

An instant later, Tomas was on the floor after Gage punched him. Tomas ruefully rubbed at his split lip, but made no effort to fight back.

"I'll let you have that one for free, Gage, but only because I know you care about the big guy as much as Ianto. Just… don't do it again, mate."

"But why?" Ianto burst out.

"Think about it," Enid spoke up anxiously. "It's pretty obvious that Jon and Carl were trying to damage the progress you've made with Joe. If either one of you had been the one to kill him, he would have stopped trusting you."

"We know that," Gage growled.

"Well, think about it," Tomas said, echoing Enid's words. "He doesn't like me or trust me anyway. Better that I be the one to do it. That way, he doesn't associate either of you with causing him more pain. Oh, and we are going to get that pair of bastards for this, I guarantee it."

Slowly, the haze of anger that had descended over Ianto began to dissipate, and he looked around at his colleagues in dazed confusion. The support they were offering was unexpected, but very welcome.

"Thankyou," he whispered, not knowing what else to say.

"We need to move him," Gage stated, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had fallen. "He shouldn't have to wake up in here."

"We can carry him over to the rec room," Tristan suggested. "You two can stay with him in there, and we'll clean his room up."

Ianto watched in a daze as his colleagues used one of the blankets off the bed as a makeshift stretcher, and carried Joe out of the room. He followed, and it wasn't until they'd settled Joe's body onto the cot that he found his voice again.

"Why are you all helping?"

"There's no ulterior motive, if that's what you're thinking," Tomas answered soberly. "We're not trying to set you up or anything like that."

"Then why? I'm sorry to keep on asking, but I just don't understand what's changed. It wasn't that long ago that you all thought Joe was just some freak to take your frustrations out on."

"We know," Enid admitted, sounding abashed. "We were wrong. Every one of us had the same choice as you when we started working here, Ianto. To either go on treating Joe like everyone else, or to see him as a human being. We all chose not to see him as a human, and that was wrong. He's a man, not a monster, and no human deserves to be treated like this."

A hand descended onto his shoulder, and he looked around to see Tomas watching him solemnly.

"We're not asking for forgiveness, mate; just that you'll let us help you to look after him from now on."

"All of us together means Spence and those other two prats won't be able to do anything like this again," Tristan said. Ianto eyed him sceptically, and Tristan reddened slightly in acknowledgement of what Ianto wasn't saying. "I know. Carl and I have… I don't need to say it, do I?"

"Save our ears, please," Gage muttered, and Tristan chuckled awkwardly.

"Right. Anyway, I'm done with him. The bloke is a bastard, and I don't want anything to do with someone who's willing to poison another person just for kicks."

"All right, sunshine," Tomas growled. "Let's go. We've got to get Joe's room cleaned up."

"We'll take him to the bathroom to clean him up when he comes back," Ianto decided, and Tomas nodded in agreement.

"Good idea. Let him have a proper bath. If Spence wants to complain about it, he can complain to me."

"You look like you don't know which way to turn," Gage said wryly once their colleagues had gone. Ianto sat down on the floor beside Joe, gently cleaning away the blood and vomit that stained Joe's face.

"I know you said they were all coming round to see Joe differently, but I didn't really believe it until now."

"They've all seen the difference you've made, Ianto. It'd have to be a cold-hearted bastard who can ignore it."

"Like Spence, Bourke and Branton?"

Gage sighed.

"Yes, like them."

"Gage, look," Ianto murmured suddenly. The older man did, and quickly saw what Ianto was indicating. The bullet wound that had killed Joe was gone, as was the skin discolouration that had been caused by the poison.

"He's coming back," Gage announced, somewhat unnecessarily. "Be ready, mate. It might take a minute before he knows he's safe."

"I know," Ianto said, bracing himself for a potential struggle. A moment later, Joe erupted back to life with a wild gasp and a pained cry. Ianto and Gage tried to hold him down, but it wasn't easy. It quickly became apparent that he was panicking, and that was the last thing they wanted.

"Joe!" Ianto spoke loudly, perching himself carefully on the edge of the cot and reaching out to grasp the sides of Joe's face in an effort to gain his attention. "Joe, it's me! It's Ianto! Stop fighting us, we're not going to hurt you!"

Slowly, Ianto's voice pierced the haze of panic that surrounded Joe, and his struggles eased off and finally ended altogether. He stared up at Ianto with wide eyes that were wet with tears.

"Yan toe…?"

"That's right," Ianto murmured, stroking the sides of his face tenderly. "It's me. Gage and I are both right here to look after you. Calm down, now, okay?"

Joe looked from one man to the other for several long seconds before his face crumpled and he burst into a fresh flood of tears.

"Ow," he sobbed, reaching up to clutch at his head.

"His head must hurt like hell," Gage said grimly, and Ianto gathered Joe into his arms. "Not surprising, seeing as he just got shot in the head. I'll bet his stomach isn't feeling too great, either."

"Gage, can you get some painkillers? And then I want to put him in the bath. Maybe by the time he's had a wash and gotten some clean clothes on, he won't hurt so badly. And hopefully the others will have finished sorting out his room."

"Consider it done," Gage assured him , and went to get the requested painkillers.

"You'll be okay," Ianto whispered, cradling Joe to him as they waited.

"Bad food," Joe whispered miserably as he clung to Ianto. "Bad Gage."

Ianto felt his stomach clench unpleasantly. Damn Jon and Carl for this.

"No, Joe. Not bad Gage. Good Gage. It wasn't his fault, Joe. He didn't mean to hurt you."

They sat quietly for the next few minutes until Gage reappeared with the requested painkillers and glass of water. As he came near, though, Joe pulled away, fear in his eyes. Gage halted, looking on with sad understanding.

"Here, Ianto. You'd better be the one to give these to him. Something tells me he's not going to accept anything from me right now."

"He's just upset and confused, Gage…"

Gage smiled sadly.

"I know, mate. It's okay, really. And to be honest, if this had to happen, then I'm glad it's me in the firing line, and not you. He needs you, Ianto. It'd wreck him to think you'd done something to hurt him."

"Gage…" Ianto started to protest, but Gage cut him off.

"I'll go run a bath. Lots of bubbles, right, Joe?"

Joe only blinked at him, still visibly unsettled. Sparing them both as reassuring a smile as he could manage, Gage hurried from the room. Ianto sighed heavily, feeling oddly like he'd just lost his best mate. He returned his attention to Joe, who was cuddling in against him again.

"I know you don't understand, Joe, and I know you're confused. I just wish that I had a way to make you understand what happened. It wasn't Gage's fault. Someone else put something bad in your milk to make you sick. It was Jon and Carl, not Gage. He wouldn't hurt you anymore than I would."

He honestly didn't expect a response, let alone coherent sentences; so when Joe spoke hesitantly, it took Ianto a long moment it to register in his mind.

"Gage didn't h… hurt me?"

Slowly, Ianto drew back to stare at Joe in astonishment.

"Did you just…? I mean… No. No, cariad, he didn't hurt you. Look at me now. Someone else put something bad in the milk. Gage didn't know about it until you got sick. He would never have given it to you if he'd known. He's never hurt you like that."

Ianto watched as Joe slowly processed what he was being told. When he finally spoke again, it was in a small, tremulous voice that was full of uncertainty.

"Gage still likes me?"

"Yes," Ianto answered firmly. "Yes, Joe, he still likes you. I promise you that he does."

Joe managed a tiny smile, then, and the relief in his eyes was obvious. Ianto sighed again, and gently thumbed a tear away from Joe's cheek.

"How about we go to the bathroom? Gage is running a bath for you, and you can show him that you aren't upset at him. Okay?"

"Okay," Joe murmured.

As Ianto led him from the Rec Room, he looked back at his charge quizzically.

"You do understand me when I speak to you, don't you?" he asked. Joe's forehead creased a little, as though it was an effort for him to comprehend.

"Y… Yes," he answered finally, tentatively.

Ianto squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"You're coming back to us. That's really good, Joe."

"N… No."

"What do you mean, no?" Ianto asked, confused.

"Not… Not Joe."

Ianto slowed to a halt and turned fully to face his charge.

"Your name's not Joe?"

Joe shook his head, and then winced at the twinge of pain that accompanied the movement.

"Easy," Ianto murmured. "Those painkillers are going to take time to work. Now, just say yes or no. Is your name Joe?"

"No."

Ianto fought down a spark of excitement. If Joe was able to remember his name, then that might put him a step closer to finding the Doctor. If he could give Sarah Jane Smith a name to go by, then it might just speed things up a little.

"What's your name, Joe? What's your real name?"

Joe didn't answer, though. He couldn't. When he tried to remember what he used to be called, it was just a painful blur. He couldn't focus at all, and certainly couldn't remember that far back when he had been living from day to day in a state of child-like simplicity for so long. The only thing he could be sure of was that Joe was not his name.

His face fell as his memories came up blank, but Ianto's hands cupping his cheeks brought him back from the edge of despondency with gentle and loving persistence.

"Hey, listen to me. It's all right. You'll remember when you're ready to remember. It's okay."

Joe stared back at him, his eyes wide and bright with unshed tears. After a long moment, he gulped and nodded. Ianto smiled warmly at him.

"That's the way. Remember, no more tears about silly things."

Although granted, Ianto thought belatedly, not being able to remember his own name was hardly a trivial thing, but he was trying to soothe Joe; not upset him all over again.

"Of course," he went on with a grin, "it just means you have to put up with me calling you Joe for a little while longer. Think you can cope with that?"

He grinned, and was relieved to get a tentative smile in return.

"All right, c'mon. Let's go and get you into the bath."

"Bubbles," Joe said happily and, even as Joe watched, he settled back into that semi-aware state of being. Taking his hand, Ianto led him along the corridor to the bathroom.

* * *

Gage had just finished filling the bath when they entered. Not wanting to upset Joe, Gage moved right away from the bath. He was visibly astonished, though, when Joe pulled away from Ianto and crossed to him. A moment later, Gage found himself caught up in a fierce hug.

"Ianto…?" Gage asked hoarsely.

"He understands that it wasn't you who poisoned him, Gage. He was scared before that you didn't like him anymore, and he's trying to say sorry for doubting that."

Gage sighed, and wrapped his arms around Joe to return the embrace.

"You daft lad, of course I like you! I'm so sorry that happened. I promise you it won't happen again."

"I like you too, Gage," Joe mumbled into his shoulder, causing Gage to look from Joe to Ianto in astonishment.

"Did he just…?"

"He did," Ianto confirmed with a grin. "He's talking properly, and he understands what's going on around him. Only drawback is that his memory is sketchy, he can't recall his real name."

"Don't worry," Gage murmured, acutely aware of the way that Joe had buried his face in his shoulder. "It'll come back to you when you're ready for it. Now, are you ready for a nice, hot bubble bath?"

The frown fell away, and Joe rapidly stripped off and clambered eagerly into the bath, where he was soon happily splashing away.

"I think his mind might finally be starting to recover," Ianto said quietly as he sat on a chair by the bath in order to wash his back, and his hair. "He had moments before when I was sure he understood more than he let on. Now I can see him actively trying to stay lucid."

"I suppose that's a good thing," Gage conceded grudgingly. Ianto eyed him with a frown, annoyed by his apparent pessimism.  
"Why do you say that? I thought it was a good thing."

"Calm down, Ianto. I agree with you… generally speaking. But think about it. The more aware he becomes, the more he'll understand what's going on around him. The more he'll understand what Torchwood has done to him, and what it's still doing to him."

"I think he understands now, Gage," Ianto murmured sadly.

"Look at him," Gage said. Ianto looked down, and smiled sadly as Joe slapped a hand down onto the surface of the water, creating a small splash and a ripple effect. He laughed in delight and did it again, harder, causing water to splash up and wet Gage.

"Oi, you!" Gage growled lightly, and reached across to ruffle Joe's hair. He was answered with a giggle that put a smile on both his and Ianto's faces.

"Just like a child," Gage murmured, torn between sadness and amusement.

"This is his defence mechanism," Ianto mused. "Everything that Torchwood did to him, this is how he dealt with it. He regressed."

"When we've gotten him out of here," Gage whispered, "I swear to God that I'm going to pack my bags and run as far from this god-forsaken place as possible. And I think you should be planning to do the same."

Ianto only smiled faintly. He had long planned to do just that from the moment he first contemplated the possibility of getting Joe away from Torchwood. He turned his attention back to Joe.

"How's your head feel now, Joe? Still sore?"

The contented smile faded from Joe's face as Ianto's words reminded him of the dull throbbing pain in his skull.

"Still sore," he echoed, rubbing gingerly at his head. Leaning in, Ianto pressed a soft kiss to Joe's temple.

"You'll feel better soon, I promise."

* * *

By the time they took Joe back to his room, it had been thoroughly cleaned, and all the bed linen replaced. It wasn't the only thing that had been done, though. All three of them stood and stared in confusion at the changes that had been made by their colleagues.

The walls, once cold and bare, had been brightened with a number of posters that Ianto quickly recognised as the nature posters that had previously been plastered around Enid and Tristan's workstations. On the table was a plastic jug with a small bouquet of flowers, along with a brightly coloured piece of material that had been laid down as a makeshift tablecloth. A small pile of books sat on the table beside the flowers.

On the bed, beside Joe's carefully folded favourite blanket, there was a small stuffed dog that Ianto was fairly sure had previously been a fixture on the desk of one of the other female archivists.

All together, they were small, but significant touches that had combined to transform what had once been a dank and dirty prison cell into a halfway decent and liveable bedroom.

Joe broke away from Gage and Ianto almost without them realising it. Pausing only to collect his blanket from the bed, he wandered over to one of the posters to stare at it. The picture he was looking at was of an ocean vista at sunset. As Ianto and Gage watched, Joe reached up to touch the picture, as though he could reach into the very image and transport himself there.

"Joe?" Ianto called out uncertainly. Joe glanced at him before moving on to the next picture — an artist's vision of the universe.

For a good couple of minutes, Joe simply stood there staring at it. Growing concerned, Ianto ventured forward until he could see Joe's face. What he saw just about broke his heart. Joe was crying — not the loud, wrenching wails of other times, but silent tears of real grief. Ianto glanced at the poster again with sad understanding before gently turning Joe away and drawing him into a comforting embrace.

"It's okay," he whispered as Joe cried into his shoulder.

"I'll take it down," Gage offered, but as he reached for the poster to pull it off the wall, Joe uttered a wail and grabbed at his hands to stop him.

"Leave it up," Ianto said quietly. "We can all use it as a reminder of where Joe really belongs."

Gage grunted.

"Yeah. Any place but here."

* * *

_tbc..._


	11. An Unexpected Turn

A/N: **This chapter (or, more specifically, the end of it) came to me out of left field. It isn't what I'd intended to happen, but... _shrugs_  
****There we are.  
I will say this much, though - there's a light at the end of the tunnel, but anyone who is familiar with my style of writing will know damned well that said light could very well be an oncoming train. Make no assumptions. That's all I'll say.**

* * *

Joe went to sleep that night with his blanket clutched in one hand and the toy dog in the other, and Ianto by his side. It had proven to be an extremely difficult day all round, particularly at meal times. When Ianto had brought lunch in, Joe all but panicked. Ianto managed to coax him over to the table, but he only sat there, staring at the plate in front of him. He flatly refused to touch any of the food, and whimpered audibly when Ianto tried to feed it to him.

Dinner time had been the same, although Ianto had managed to get Joe to eat at least a few bites — but only after eating nearly half the contents of the evening meal himself in order to prove it was untainted. Even Ianto's suggestions of a treat had no effect.

By the time Joe went to bed — still hungry, judging by the growls coming from his stomach — Ianto was ready to kill Branton and Bourke himself. He stroked his thumb lightly over Joe's forehead and temple, wondering again how anyone could look at Joe and not feel some degree of sympathy for him. The door opened, and Gage looking in at him quizzically.

"You're staying with him tonight, then?"

"Not the whole night," Ianto answered, even though a deeper instinct whispered otherwise. "I just wanted to make sure he's settled. It wasn't the easiest day for him."

"No kidding," Gage muttered. "And the fact that Branton and Bourke never showed today just proves that they were responsible, as far as I'm concerned."

"Do me a favour, Gage. Don't go after them. You know Spence will back them up if there's any trouble. It isn't worth it."

Gage grunted.

"Yeah, well, that's a matter of opinion. But all right, mate. I'll let it go. But if they try anything again, they're going to have a lot more than just me to worry about. Now, are you sure you're okay? You don't want me to bring the cot in for you?"

"No, I'm fine. I just want to sit with him for a while."

"All right, then. See you in the morning."

"Goodnight, Gage."

* * *

Ianto awoke what might have been minutes or hours later, startled back into awareness by the sound of the electronic lock releasing, and the door opening with a hiss. Slightly dazed from sleep, and abruptly and painfully aware of a serious crick in his neck, he looked around blearily to see two familiar and very unwelcome figures stumbling drunkenly into the room.

"Hey, look," Carl Branton slurred to his mate, Jon Bourke. "The little faggot's in here. You keeping your boyfriend company, faggot?"

Slowly, Ianto got to his feet. As yet, Joe had not woken up, and Ianto fervently hoped that he wouldn't. After the day he'd had, the last thing he needed was to be confronted by two drunken and abusive bastards.

"You two are drunk," he stated softly.

"Aren't you fucking observant," Bourke said with a sneer. Ianto didn't flinch at their hostility.

"Get out of here and go home, and I won't report you."

"Report us?" Bourke laughed. "Report us for what? You can't do a fucking thing to us, Jones. Spence won't let you, and you know it."

Suddenly, Branton let out a hoot of laughter that caused Joe to stir restlessly.

"Look, Jon! He's cuddling a teddy bear! A fucking teddy!"

"And a blankie!" Carl added, roaring with laughter. Disturbed by the noise, Joe awoke and looked around groggily.

"Yan toe?" he asked in confusion.

"Aw, sweet, he knows your name," Branton spat. Ianto stepped deliberately between Joe and the two aggressors, suddenly fearful that the situation was on the verge of turning violent.

"If you have a problem, Carl, then let's take it outside, please! Just leave Joe alone."

He stepped forward, intending to usher them out. Bourke seemed to take exception to the action, though, and in the next moment he was thrown around and slammed against the wall. He heard Joe utter a distressed cry, and tried to go to him. Bourke held him against the wall, though, and winded him with a solid punch to the gut when he struggled.

Barely able to breathe, Ianto could only watch numbly as Branton began to brat up Joe, using fists, feet and the much-hated stun stick. Joe didn't fight back, but just cowered and tried uselessly to protect himself from the blows that rained down on him. Branton's steel-tipped boot connected with Joe's forearm, and Ianto sobbed in anger and sympathy at the sickening sound of the bone breaking. Joe howled in pain, and when the damaged limb dropped, Branton delivered a second kick to Joe's face.

Joe collapsed, his cheek bone shattered by the impact. His body was slick with blood, his arm broken, his torso covered with bruises and abrasions and his face was a swollen and bloodied mess. Branton turned back to Ianto, a hate-filled sneer twisting his features.

"Your turn, Jonesy."

Ianto barely had time to blink before Bourke's fist drove into his gut again. He doubled over with a pained grunt, only to suffer a knee to the face that broke his nose, and would likely leave his eye well and truly blackened. He fell to his knees when one of them slammed their fists down on his back, and moments later he was spitting up blood as Branton's boot drove into his chest and stomach.

They were going to kill him, he was certain of it. They would kill him, and leave his body there to make it look like Joe had gone berserk and killed him. He wanted to weep at the injustice of it, but he could barely breathe, let alone cry.

He watched dazedly as Branton drew his foot back, and tried to brace himself for what he expected would be a killing blow. Except, it never came.

Ianto tried hard to focus, and gradually he managed to make out the sight of Carl Branton being dragged backwards by an enraged Joe. Branton was shrieking for help like a baby as he struggled futilely against Joe's greater strength. Ianto watched in numb shock as Joe, with only one hand, gripped Branton around the throat, swung him around and slammed him into the wall with brutal force. Branton's head collided with the concrete wall and blood spattered in a wide arc as his skull caved in with the force of the impact.

Panicked, Bourke snatched up the stun stick and brandished it wildly. He managed to connect, and Joe bellowed in rage and pain. Rather than disabling him, though, the pain only served to galvanise him. With a snarl, Joe lunged at Bourke and tackled him to the floor. Ianto braced himself, not sure just what Joe was going to do. He watched breathlessly while Joe hovered over Bourke, as though contemplating how to deal with him.

"Jones!" Bourke screamed. "Jones, get him the fuck off me!"

Slowly, Ianto pushed himself up into a sitting position. He wiped a hand across his mouth, managing to smear blood across his cheek in the process. He didn't need a mirror to know he looked a mess.

Joe had paused. He still had Bourke pinned firmly to the floor, but he was watching Ianto. Waiting for instructions, like a good soldier…

He blinked, wondering where on earth that comparison had come from. Feeling dazed and sick, he forced himself to focus on Bourke.

"Looks like we've got the upper hand, doesn't it, Joe?"

Joe looked back to Bourke, and grinned menacingly.

"Upper hand," he whispered, and his tome sent chills down Ianto's spine.

"Call him off!" Bourke begged. "Damn it, Jones, call it off, or I swear to God I'll kill you!"

"You're not in any position to be threatening, me, Bourke," Ianto said blandly, and then shook his head in annoyance. "Now that wasn't clichéd at all, was it?"

"Yan toe?" Jack asked, a slight frown on his swollen features. Ianto sighed. Little though he liked having to let Bourke go, he could not condone murder.

"Let him go, Joe."

Though he didn't make a sound, Ianto could have sworn that Joe was disappointed. Even so, he didn't hesitate to back off and let Bourke up.

"You little fucker, I'm going to kill you for this," Bourke snarled as he crawled over to check Branton. A moment later, he realised what Ianto already knew. "He's dead… Your goddamn freak killed him! The Director will have your ass for this, Jones. You'll be ret-conned… or maybe even executed… and your pet here will be shipped off to fucking Antarctica!"

Ianto laughed sourly as he struggled to his feet.

"Is that what you think is going to happen, Jon? You really think that the Director is going to ship off the Institute's most valuable commodity? I think that was the phrase she used. In which case, I believe that makes you the expendable one, and not Joe. And as for me, something tells me that she's not going to be too hasty in getting rid of me, either, when I'm the only one who can really control Joe. So again, what do you think is going to happen?"

The look that slowly dawned on Bourke's face told Ianto that he'd just come to the same realisation. He stood up slowly, suddenly very quiet. He and Ianto stared down for nearly a full minute before Bourke finally lowered his gaze. Ianto barely restrained himself for uttering an audible sigh of relief.

"Get out of here, Bourke. I don't want you ever coming anywhere near Joe again. You do, and I'll kill you."

"You don't have the balls."

Ianto returned Bourke's sullen glare easily.

"You really don't want to test me on that. Now, get out."

Bourke walked towards the door, head down to shield his face from Ianto's sight. He was almost out the door when he turned suddenly and lunged at Ianto with a howl of rage. Ianto was frozen, his reactions dulled and leaving him incapable of defending himself.

But then, just as abruptly, Joe was between him and Bourke, intercepting the attack and easily bearing the brunt of Bourke's substantial bulk slamming into him. That time, Joe didn't wait for instructions from Ianto. He grabbed the sides of Bourke's head, despite his broken arm, and gave a single, clean twist.

Ianto winced at the sound of Bourke's neck snapping, and watched with a morbid fascination as the lifeless body crumpled to the floor at Joe's feet. As Joe turned back to him, Ianto couldn't stave off the shock any longer, and he slid numbly to the floor. As much as he had known all along that Bourke and Branton hated him, it was still a massive shock to the system to comprehend that they had actually just tried to kill him.

He felt hands on his shoulders, and looked up to see Joe crouching in front of him, worry and fear in his eyes. He tried to tell Joe not to worry, but his brain longer seemed to want to cooperate with the rest of his body, and he couldn't form the words.

He was going into shock, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

The sudden sensation of lips pressed against his own was unexpected, to say the least, but he could barely believe it when the pain and the confusion fogging his brain began to clear. New warmth began to spread steadily through his body, bringing him back to awareness and taking away the worst of the pain.

His eyes opened to find Joe's face a hair's breadth from his own, and Joe's warm, soft lips against his. It was fairly chaste as far as kisses went, but Ianto could feel something in it aside from a somewhat clumsy exchange of tongues. He could feel a strange sort of energy being fed into him through the kiss — an energy that was boosting his body's healing rate to the point where he could actually feel his broken nose repairing itself.

Suddenly panicked that Joe was damaging himself, however inadvertently, Ianto pulled away from the embrace. At a glance, Joe didn't appear any worse for wear, but Ianto did notice that none of Joe's injuries were showing any signs of beginning to heal. His expression didn't reflect the pain of his injuries, though. Rather, he looked nervous, but hopeful as he watched Ianto.

"Better?" he asked simply, reaching out to touch Ianto's cheek.

"Yes," Ianto answered hoarsely. "Much better."

And it was, he realised. Whatever Joe had done, whether it was intentional or not, had healed the worst of his injuries. His chest and stomach no longer felt like they were on fire, and he could breathe easily through his nose once more.  
His vision was slowly clearing, and as it did his gaze fell on the dead bodies of Carl Branton and Jon Bourke, and nausea rose afresh in his gut. With considerable effort he clamped down on the urge to yell at Joe. That desire was the fear talking, he told himself. It wasn't Joe's fault — he'd reacted instinctively to a tangible threat, and not even to protect himself.

"You saved my life," Ianto whispered. He lifted one trembling hand to Joe's shoulder as the enormity of what had just happened suddenly crashed down on him. Joe had not actually fought back until Branton and Bourke turned on him. Up until that point, he had simply lain there and taken the beating they were dishing out. The moment they'd turned on him, though, that had all changed.

Branton and Bourke had never had a chance, Ianto realised numbly, and by the time they'd understood that, it had been too late.

Ianto found his mind dwelling on the last few minutes, and had to actively gather his thoughts into a cohesive order.

"We need to deal with the bodies," he muttered, more to himself than to Joe. "And the CCTV footage… Need to do something about that… We need help, Joe. I can't do this on my own."

"Gage," Joe said softly. He was cradling his broken arm against his body, and was starting to look a little on the pale side. Ianto nodded his agreement, even as he guided Joe over and urged him to sit on his bed.

"Right. Gage. Good idea. And Tomas, too, I think."

Joe's face darkened at the second name, and Ianto sighed and ruffled Joe's hair soothingly.

"I know you don't like him, Joe, but we need his help. Please, just try not to growl at him?"

Joe looked up at him with such a look of wide-eyed innocence that Ianto couldn't help but laugh.

"Yes, I'm talking to you, you silly goose. Now, just wait here while I go and call Gage and Tomas."

* * *

Gage arrived within ten minutes, and Tomas shortly after. Both men were stunned speechless by the scene they were confronted with.

"Bloody hell," Gage whispered in shock. "Look at this…"

Tomas moved from Bourke to Branton, checking each man carefully before looking around at Ianto, who was in the process of trying to splint Joe's broken arm.

"Joe seriously did all of this? Fuck me…"

"He was protecting me," Ianto answered defensively. "The silly fool just lay there and let those bastards beat him, but the moment they turned on me, he took them both out. I've never seen anything like it before. It was frightening, like something you'd only ever expect to see in a movie. He just grabbed Carl by the throat and slammed him into the wall hard enough to cave his head in, and he snapped Jon's neck like a twig. I'm starting to wonder whether perhaps Joe used to be a soldier."

"Or maybe an assassin," Gage murmured speculatively. "He definitely seems to have a killing instinct."

Ianto said nothing, opting to focus on the bandages he was wrapping carefully around Joe's forearm.

"It doesn't matter what he used to be," Tomas said impatiently. "What matters is what we do right now."

"The CCTV," Ianto said without looking up. "We have to clear the footage. Then we'll need to get rid of the bodies."

"No," Tomas cut him off, and Gage rounded on him incredulously.

"Are you out of your mind? Do you think we should just leave the bodies here?"

"That's exactly what I'm thinking," Tomas replied.

"Damn it, Tomas, do you have any idea what they'll do to Joe when it gets out that he killed them? It won't matter than he did it to protect Ianto! He'll be locked away in some dank little hole, and he'll be treated worse than he was before Ianto came along!"

"Are you done?" Tomas asked when Gage paused to take a breath. "Because if you want to get through this mess, then you'd best shut up and listen."

Gage glanced at Ianto before sighing and nodding.

"Fine. Go ahead."

"Thankyou. Now, we are only going to delete footage of this room, so that no one knows Ianto was here. Aside from that, we touch nothing."

Ianto's jaw clenched as he tried to maintain a reasonable semblance of calm.

"Why?"

"Because," Tomas answered with a tight smile, "that way the blame will be put firmly on Carl and Jon tomorrow morning when it's discovered that Joe escaped in the night."

* * *

_tbc..._


	12. Out

Ianto followed Tomas's instructions in a daze, going with Gage to the room that housed the monitoring equipment for the Secure Archives. They walked in and were nearly overwhelmed by the stench of beer in the air.

"They must have been in here drinking themselves stupid long before they went to beat up you and Joe," Gage said grimly as he observed the many empty beer bottles that were scattered around the room.

"Gage, look at this," Ianto said suddenly. Gage joined Ianto at the computer, and quickly realised what had caught the younger man's attention.

"The Secure Archives CCTV is off. It hasn't been recording for at least an hour and a half. Fuck, Ianto! Those sons of bitches planned on attacking Joe! Stupid fools probably couldn't figure out how to turn off only Joe's room, so they just shut down the whole of the Archives. This is good… although, not so much for Branton and Bourke."

"They got what was coming to them," Ianto said, with little remorse in his voice. "I'm just grateful that Joe's level of comprehension is still limited. I do not want him to feel guilty over those two bastards."

Gage eyed him quizzically, catching an undertone of tension in the younger man's face.

"Ianto? Are _you_ all right?"

"No, I'm not all right. I watched two men die tonight, and the only thing stopping me from being terrified of the man who killed them is knowing that he only did it to protect me."

"He loves you, mate. It's simple as that."

Ianto's mind went back to the healing kiss he'd received from Joe, and his mind literally stuttered.

_It's not half as simple as you think_, he thought bitterly.

"Oy. Earth to Ianto. Snap out of it, mate. You need to focus. We've got to figure out what we're going to do here. I mean, it's all well and good to say we're going to get Joe out tonight, but where does he go? Do we go with him? How the hell are we going to keep Hartman and her cronies from finding him? Because you know they're not going to just let him go."

Ianto nodded. He knew, all right.

"One step at a time," he murmured. "Let's get back to Joe's room. I just need to grab a fresh set of clothes for him from my locker. And shoes… He's going to need shoes."

"I think he's about the same size as me," Gage estimated. "I'll get the spare pair of jogging shoes from my locker for him."

They arrived back at Joe's room to a surprising sight. Joe was sitting placidly on his bed, and Tomas sat beside him, gently mopping at a still-bleeding cut that was just above his right ear. Tomas smiled wryly at Ianto.

"Your boy is a smart one, Ianto. He knows I don't want to hurt him. And frankly, after what I had to do yesterday morning, I'm kind of surprised by that."

Ianto couldn't suppress a small smile.

"He is smart," he agreed quietly. He walked over and sat down on the other side of Joe, automatically taking one of his hands and squeezing it reassuringly.

"Yan toe," Joe murmured. Ianto leaned in to kiss him lightly on the temple, and Joe sighed contentedly and settled in against him, resting his head on Ianto's shoulder.

"I have to go with him, Tomas," Ianto said softly. "If we're really doing this, then I can't just abandon him. Wherever we send him, I need to go too. He won't cope on his own."

"Are you positive about that?" Tomas asked soberly. "Because if you go with him, there'll be no turning back. And you know what'll happen if they catch you."

"It doesn't matter whether I stay or go. If I'm here tomorrow morning when they discover Joe's missing and those two bastards are dead, who's going to be the first person they haul in to question? Me. And it wouldn't matter whether I had a hand in it or not. I'd still get the blame. You know that. It's best all round if I go. That way, you can all say I was solely responsible, and no one else has to get into trouble. Plus, it'll be a lot easier on Joe if I'm with him."

"Where will you go?" Tomas asked. "Do you have any idea?"

Ianto ran his fingers through his hair. He hadn't anticipated this happening. In his mind, he had imagined the mysterious Doctor coming in, all full of righteous fury, and delivering Joe from the hell that Torchwood represented. His head was spinning with the realisation that, all of a sudden, Joe's liberation was very firmly in his hands.

"I suppose there's my Mam and my Tad. They live in Wales, about an hour out of Cardiff…"

"Ianto, you can't go home," Gage said tensely.

"He's right," Tomas agreed. "It's one of the first places they'll watch for you. You can't go anywhere near your family. No contact, nothing. It's too dangerous."

Ianto felt the stress building in his gut, but before it could really take hold an idea struck. It was a slim chance, but it was all he had.

"I know somewhere that he might be safe, at least for the time being," Ianto murmured. "I can get us there all right, but I need help getting him out of the building."

"Already thought of," Tomas said. "Did you realise there's a back way out of here? Leads straight out into the parking lot, believe it or not."

Ianto raised an eyebrow sceptically, but Tomas only grinned and shrugged.

"What can I say? Love those mandatory emergency fire exits. Now, where's your car?"

"I can't take my car, Tomas…"

"Oh, I know that. _I_ was going to take it, and leave it somewhere. Make it look like you took it to start with and then ditched it, so it'll at least give you some leeway. No, mate, you're going to take my car. Then, when you're done with it, just text me to let me know where you left it."

Ianto shivered with a mixture of fear and anticipation.

"We're really doing this, aren't we? Right now…"

"Yeah," Gage murmured. "We are. You ready?"

"Not really," Ianto answered ruefully. Ignoring him, Gage crouched down in front of Joe.

"I'm letting you have my lucky runners, Joe. You take good care of them, all right?"

"All right," Joe echoed softly, although the baffled expression on his face suggested strongly that he didn't really understand what was going on. He watched with a detached sort of fascination as Gage pushed the runners onto his feet and laced them up. Then, Ianto and Tomas urged him to his feet and began to lead him from the room.

Comprehension dawned on his face as he was shepherded towards the door, distress filled his face and he tried to pull away from them.

"What's the matter with him?" Tomas asked in annoyed confusion. "He can't _want_ to stay?"

"Maybe he's just been here so long that the idea of leaving is terrifying in itself," Ianto said breathlessly as he struggled to push Joe through the door.

"Maybe he just doesn't understand we're getting him out of here?" Tomas suggested.

"Maybe you're both wrong," Gage said from behind them. They paused, and Gage stepped around them and held out two items to Joe – his blanket and the toy dog. Gratitude and relief flooded Joe's face, and he quickly snatched the two precious items up in his uninjured arm.

"Thanks, Gage," Ianto said sincerely. "I never even thought about them."

"C'mon," Gage said with a wry smile. He backed out of the room, motioning for Joe to follow, which he proceeded to do without hesitation.

They made their way quickly to the fire exit, safe in the knowledge that the CCTV wasn't tracking them. It would be a different story, of course, when they got outside, but Tomas had told them he had a friend in the primary observation department who had the skills to either wipe or alter footage from any CCTV camera that Torchwood had access to. A friend, he'd said with a nudge and a grin, who owed him a couple of very big favours.

Every moment that they drew closer to the fire exit, Ianto kept expecting a hand on his shoulder, or the piercing wail of the alarm. Neither happened, but it didn't save his nerves from being shot to hell once they finally reached the door.

"And out we go," Tomas murmured after Gage had disabled the alarm on the door.

Ianto stepped out into the cold, clear night, and gently drew Joe out with him. The older man went slowly, his eyes wide as he looked around at his new surroundings. Despite Ianto wanting to hurry him along, he still paused to take a great, long sniff of the air.

"I suppose after however many years locked away in dungeons like an animal, this air must smell pretty damned good," Tomas remarked ruefully.

Oblivious to the amusement of the others, Joe tilted his head back and took in another deep breath. Then, as his eyes opened again, he finally saw the stars that glinted high above their heads.

Ianto halted, realising where Joe's attention was suddenly being directed. As he watched, a look of yearning filled Joe's face, and a single tear slipped down his cheek.

"C'mon," Ianto urged him softly. "We have to keep moving."

Joe allowed himself to be guided through the parking lot with some reluctance, and Ianto found himself having to tug on Joe's hand in order to keep him walking. For his part, Joe's eyes were fixed firmly on the night sky, and it wasn't hard to guess where he longed to be.

Tomas led them to his car, and handed Ianto the keys.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Yeah," Ianto answered, keeping it to himself that he wasn't at all sure whether he could find the hoped-for safe house again, having been there only once – not to mention, he had no idea whether they would even be welcome. "We'll be fine. And both of you… thankyou."

"All part of the service," Gage said cheerfully, but there was also sadness in his eyes as he pulled Ianto into a hug. "Take care of yourself, _and _our boy. And don't take this the wrong way, but I hope I don't see you again. At least, not in this place."

Ianto nodded in understanding. He then ushered Joe into the passenger seat and buckled him in. Joe looked bemused, but put up no fuss at the unexpected happenings. Gage leaned in, and kissed him on top of his head.

"You look after Ianto now, okay?"

Joe stared up at Gage, and for a moment his eyes lost the innocent emptiness that had been predominant for so long.

"I will," he said softly, and then reached up with his uninjured arm to touch Gage's cheek. Gage clasped his hand over Joe's briefly before stepping back and closing the door.

"For heaven's sake, keep your heads down, wherever you go," Tomas told him as Ianto got in. "Hartman will tear this city apart when she finds you both gone."

Ianto could only nod. Swallowing the sheer terror that was threatening to overwhelm him, he put his foot down on the accelerator and drove himself and Joe out of the parking lot, and away from Torchwood.

* * *

"They're going to kill us," Gage said in a preternaturally calm voice as he and Tomas watched Tomas's car disappear into the night. "You know that, don't you? No matter what we do, how much CCTV footage we get rid of, someone's going to peg us for helping them, and when they do, they'll execute us both."

Tomas smiled crookedly.

"Of course I know. But don't you think it'll be worth it, to see Hartman in hysterics because her pet anomaly has gone missing? That bitch has messed around with Joe's life for far too long, and I'm just sorry I never had the balls to do anything about it until now. If they want to kill me over this, then let them. As long as Ianto can keep Joe safe, then I'll consider it worth the sacrifice."

"Yeah," Gage conceded with a weary smile. "Me, too."

* * *

From the moment they were on the move, Joe had his face glued to the window. He peered out into the darkness at the passing scenery, and occasionally up at the stars. Ianto was immensely grateful for it, as it allowed him to concentrate on where they were going.

He had two prominent concerns right at that moment. Firstly, finding Sarah Jane Smith's house in the dark, after having been there only once. Secondly, whether she would welcome them or turn them away. If that were to happen, he would have to rethink everything, but he'd deal with that if and when necessary. He hoped that she wouldn't turn them away, but at the same time a little voice whispered that she would be perfectly within her rights to slam the door shut on them.

He tried to push that worry away from the forefront of his mind. First thing was first. He needed to find her house.

Gradually, he became aware of Joe murmuring to himself as they drove. Curious, he listened more closely, and realised that Joe was actually naming things that they passed. Trees… houses… fences… It was as though he was trying to kick-start his own memory.

Smiling to himself, he returned his attention fully to the road ahead, and silence reigned for the next several minutes until Joe spoke unexpectedly.

"Where are we going?"

Ianto glanced at him in surprise. It was one of the few complete, coherent and unprompted sentences that Joe had uttered since he'd started talking.

"We're going to find someone called Sarah Jane Smith. If we're lucky, she'll be willing to hide us for a while."

"Hide?"

"That's right. We have to find somewhere to hide, Joe. Things are going to get very tense. Joe… Do you understand what's going on?"

Joe turned his gaze back to the window, and Ianto thought for a moment that he wasn't going to get a response.

"Running away," Joe said finally, softly. "Escaping. No more bad place."

Ianto felt his heart clench at his weary tone. He wondered all of a sudden whether he really was the first to ever try and get Joe out of Torchwood.

"That's right," he confirmed, and he reached across to grasp Joe's hand. "No more bad place. I promise I'm going to do my best to keep you safe now, but you have to do as I say. Okay?"

"Okay," Joe answered agreeably. There was another minute of silence, and then Joe spoke again uncertainly.

"It hurts, Yan toe."

"What hurts? Your arm?"

"Arm… head…" He touched his chest gingerly. "Here."

"I know," Ianto murmured. "I'm sorry, Joe. Can you hold on for a little while longer?"

Joe managed a small smile, and tried to settle down in the seat, still cradling his arm to his body. He was frightened, Ianto thought unhappily, and he had every reason to be. As terrible as it had been for him inside Torchwood, at least there had been some degree of stability – some certainty from day to day. In one fell swoop, that stability had been yanked out from under him, and Ianto suspected that Joe probably understood better than any of them what he faced if recaptured. It wasn't in any way a pleasant thought.

* * *

They found the house purely by accident. Ianto was almost to the end of the road when he spotted the dimly-lit sign on the corner, telling him they were in Bannerman Road. Heart pounding, Ianto did a quick about-turn and drove slowly back along the road until he finally recognised the house that Sylvia had brought him to.

_Sylvia_… Ianto thought abruptly, his stomach lurching. He could only pray that she wouldn't be implicated in Joe's rescue, and that if she was she would be able to maintain a cool head. He would hate to see her suffer when she was the one who had put him in touch with Sarah Jane to begin with.

"Joe?" He reached over to rest a hand lightly on Joe's shoulder, and a pair of pale blue eyes blinked back at him drowsily. "We're here. C'mon. Let's go see if anyone's home."

* * *

Luke Smith was sitting at the kitchen table, eating a large bowl of ice cream while happily reading an astrophysics text book when the doorbell rang. His first instinct was to abandon both book and bowl, and flee back to his bedroom – after all, it was well past time when he should have been in bed. Curiosity overcame self-preservation, though, and he went to see who was there.

Sarah Jane was just coming down the stairs at the same moment, wrapping her dressing gown tightly around her body.

"Luke? What on earth are you doing up at this hour?"

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd get some ice cream and catch up on some reading. Who's at the door?"

She sighed inwardly.

"I'm about to find out. Stay back, just in case."

She gave him no chance to ask in case of what. Striding over to the door, she opened it with every intention of telling the individual on the other side to go away before she decided to call the police. The words, however, died in her throat when she saw who was there.

"Mr Jones," she said quietly, her eyes narrowing. "I assume there's a very good reason why you're standing on my doorstep at this hour? Especially after I specifically told you that _I _would be the one to contact _you_. And two days is hardly enough time to make any progress…"

"I know, Ma'am," Ianto said breathlessly. "I'm very sorry, but circumstances have changed fairly drastically."

She raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? In what way?"

Ianto took a step to the side, and drew another individual into sight. Sarah Jane frowned for just a brief moment before realisation struck, and her mouth opened in shock.

"Is this…?"

"This is Joe," Ianto confirmed. Sarah Jane moved quickly aside, and ushered them in. Ianto urged Joe to go ahead of him, murmuring reassurances as they went.

"Dare I ask what's happened?" she asked as she quickly locked the door behind them. "I mean, aside from the obvious."

"Two of my colleagues got themselves drunk and attacked Joe," Ianto explained. "He didn't fight back until they turned on me."

"And then…?"

"Then he killed them."

Sarah Jane stared warily at Joe, acutely aware of Luke's presence behind her. Ianto saw the look on her face, and spoke anxiously.

"He's not dangerous. Not like that. He did it to protect me, and I think he just doesn't have any concept of his own strength at the moment."

Except, Ianto reflected dully, that was a blatant lie, for Joe's actions had been concise and controlled. He'd known exactly what he was doing. Slowly, Sarah Jane approached, and Ianto rubbed Joe's arm reassuringly.

"It's okay, Joe. She's a friend."

"Friend," Joe whispered, and visibly relaxed. Sarah Jane raised an eyebrow at Ianto in curiosity, and then closed the distance between her and Joe.

"It's all right, sweetheart," she murmured when Joe trembled slightly at her touch. "I'm not going to hurt you." She peered up at his battered face, and then at his arm. "He's hurt. Mr Jones, if you'll bring your Joe to the kitchen? And Luke, go and get the medical kit from downstairs."

She led them into the kitchen and put the kettle on to boil while Ianto ushered Joe into a chair.

"You were saying about what happened tonight, Mr Jones?"

Ianto nodded, while at the same time he pulled a chair around so that he was sitting beside Joe.

"I called a couple of colleagues, and we made a sort of impromptu decision to get Joe out of there, while we had the chance."

"You've taken a very big chance, Mr Jones."

Ianto shuddered involuntarily.

"Yes, Ma'am. I know. But when the opportunity presented itself, I had to take it."

She walked over to them, peering thoughtfully at Joe. It was an effort to maintain a composed exterior, but inside she was weeping at the sight of the traumatised man before her. For just a brief moment, she could see her own Luke in this man – frightened, confused and alone.

Crouching down so as to avoid any suggestion of a threat in her posture, she reached out and laid one hand lightly on Joe's knee.

"What's your name?"

He thought about it for a moment before speaking hesitantly.

"Joe."

"But Joe isn't your real name, is it?"

He looked aggrieved.

"No."

"He can't remember his name," Ianto said. "His memory hasn't really started to come back yet."

Sarah Jane ignored him, and kept her focus on Joe.

"Tell me, Joe, do you remember the Doctor?"

Joe's breath hitched slightly in his chest.

"Doctor," he whispered, and his free hand clenched reflexively. He said no more, though, and Sarah Jane sighed softly and reached up to stroke his cheek tenderly. "I think you could have so much to tell us, if we could just unlock your mind."

Footsteps outside the kitchen announced Luke's arrival, and he hurried through into the kitchen with what looked like an industrial medical kit. He set it on the table with a resounding thud.

"Mum? Got the kit."

"Thankyou. Now, finish boiling that kettle, and when it's done I need you to make me a nice, strong cup of tea. Mr Jones?"

"Tea is fine," Ianto murmured. He would have much preferred coffee, but he wasn't going to be choosy at two in the morning when he was on the run from what was most likely the most powerful agency in all of Britain.

"What would you like to drink, Joe?" she asked. He hesitated, though, as if he was unsure how to answer.

"There's chilled water in the fridge," Sarah Jane suggested, deciding tea might not be the best thing for him. "Or if you'd rather, we have fruit juice… or even just plain milk."

At the mention of milk, Joe's face crumpled and he whimpered softly, his good arm slipping around to hold his stomach. Sarah Jane looked questioningly to Ianto.

"He has issues with milk?"

"He was poisoned with milk just yesterday," Ianto admitted grimly. "I don't think he quite understands that it won't happen again."

"Luke, pour some fruit juice for him," Sarah Jane instructed firmly. As Luke did so, Sarah turned her attention to providing Joe with whatever medical aid she was capable of giving. For his part, Joe sat in stoic silence, allowing her to dab gently at his face with antiseptic and only wincing occasionally when she touched a particularly sore spot.

"His arm is broken," she said softly, and Ianto nodded.

"I know. I braced it as best as I could. It will heal within a few days. If you have painkillers that I could give him, I'd appreciate it. He's in quite a bit of pain."

"I imagine he is," Sarah Jane agreed. "Tell me, Mr Jones, exactly what is it that you want from me? Now that you've achieved your goal and rescued Joe from Torchwood?"

Ianto's breath caught slightly in his throat at her tone.

"Joe might be out of Torchwood, Ma'am, but he's far from safe. They'll know he's gone within a matter of hours, and then there'll be very few places we'll be able to hide."

"And that's why you've come here. You expect me to hide you both? Mr Jones, I have worked very hard to avoid any attention from Torchwood, and you've just put that in extreme jeopardy!"

Ianto scrubbed a hand over his face, and tried desperately to ignore the sinking feeling in his gut.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking clearly. You're right, of course. I'll take Joe, and find somewhere else. Perhaps if we just keep moving, they'll eventually give up."

Sarah Jane rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"It is far too early in the morning to be playing the guilt card, young man. And for the record, I never said I wouldn't help you."

Ianto looked up at her, suddenly hopeful.

"You'll let us stay?"

"For tonight, yes. And then tomorrow night, we'll get you both to another location – hopefully one that's less obvious than here."

Ianto looked to Joe, who was watching him and Sarah Jane with eyes that were dulled somewhat by the pain he was in.

"He won't be completely safe until we find the Doctor. The Doctor is the only chance he has to escape Torchwood."

"Here," Luke said, bringing over a tall glass with fruit juice in it. When Joe just stared at the glass warily, Luke spoke enthusiastically. "Try it, it's good. Really good."

Reluctantly, Joe set his blanket and dog on the table beside him, and picked up the glass and sipped at the juice. A smile lit up his face as he registered the pleasant taste, and he drank the contents with fresh enthusiasm.

"He's thirsty," Sarah Jane remarked with a smile, and Ianto nodded.

"He hadn't had much at all to eat or drink after the business with the milk yesterday morning. I imagine he's quite hungry, too."

"Luke," Sarah Jane said, "sweetheart, toast some bread for Joe."

"I could get him some ice cream," Luke suggested, but Sarah Jane smiled and shook her head.

"No, no ice cream. Not at this time of night. If he's not had much to eat, that will just give him a stomach ache. Now, Mr Jones..."

"Please," Ianto murmured. The adrenalin was starting to wear off, and he was suddenly finding it difficult to keep his eyes open. "Just call me Ianto."

Sarah Jane nodded agreeably.

"Ianto, then. We'll get Joe fed and do what we can to ease his pain, and then finds beds for the both of you. You'll both need to stay hidden throughout the day, and then tomorrow night we'll move you elsewhere."

"Where will we be going?" Ianto wondered, trying to stifle a jaw-cracking yawn.

"I'm not going to tell you where. Just that you should be safe, and if there's any place that you're likely to meet up with the Doctor, it'll be there."

Ianto looked sadly at Joe, who was demolishing the toast Luke had brought to him with renewed enthusiasm.

"I hope so, because Torchwood is relentless, and I really don't know how long we'll be able to hide from them."

* * *

_tbc..._


	13. They Called Me Jack

Joe awoke with a start, covered in sweat and with a panicked cry on his lips. He lay frozen, his heart pounding as he struggled to comprehend what was happening. This was definitely not his own bed that he was lying in, and the walls of the room were the wrong colour. They were a pretty blue colour, where his own room was supposed to be white.

This was not his room, he remembered. It was someone else's room, in someone else's home. His breath came in a ragged gasp as he finally remembered the night's events. His Yan toe had taken him away from the bad place; away from the bad people who only wanted to hurt him.

He started to sit up, wincing at the dull ache that flared briefly throughout his body. It wasn't anywhere near as bad as it had been the night before, but he still took care when easing himself out of the bed. Joe paused only to gather up his blanket and dog before wandering over to the window and peering out through the curtains.

It was just past dawn, and the window faced the rising sun, giving Joe a mesmerising view of a red and orange hued sky. The brightness of the sun caused him to squint a little – it had been a very long time since his eyes had been exposed to natural daylight. As he watched the sky gradually lightening, and the colours fading into a clear blue, he felt tears burn his eyes as, somewhere deep within his own subconscious mind, it registered that he wasn't dreaming. This was real.

He stood there for a long time, just staring out as the world beyond the window grew bright and alive. He was so engrossed in the vision before him that he didn't realise he was no longer alone until he felt movement beside him. Joe started a little in fright, but relaxed again when he recognised the boy who had given him food and drink on their arrival.

"It's incredible, isn't it? I remember my first morning waking up here after Mum saved me. Could hardly believe it, that I was free."

Joe stared at him, puzzled. His comprehension was still limited, and he had no real understanding of the word 'free'. Luke smiled up at him reassuringly.

"Do you want to come downstairs with me, and get some breakfast? You can have some of my Cocoa Pops, if you want."

Joe had no idea what Cocoa Pops were. In his experience, breakfast meant toast, fruit and Gage's pancakes… although, he couldn't help a tiny shudder that went through him as he was reminded inadvertently of his last experience having pancakes. He was hungry, though, and his stomach growled loudly in response to the suggestion of food. Luke laughed, and gently took Joe's hand in his own, as though he could sense Joe's uncertainty.

"C'mon, come with me. Let's go get something to eat."

* * *

Ianto was in the kitchen with Sarah Jane when they walked in, and Joe quickly crossed to where Ianto stood by the coffee maker.

"Good morning," Ianto greeted him with a smile and a hug. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Joe confirmed, clinging to Ianto for perhaps a moment longer than strictly necessary. "Still sore… but better."

Sarah Jane came over and gently ran her fingers over Joe's arm.

"I must have been exhausted last night myself. I could have sworn this arm was broken."

"You weren't wrong," Ianto told her quietly as he ushered Joe to sit at the table. "It was broken, but I'm guessing it wasn't a bad break. It's almost completely healed. I might still give him something for the pain, though, once he's had breakfast."

"Cocoa Pops!" Joe burst out abruptly, and Ianto raised an eyebrow.

"You don't even know what Cocoa Pops are."

Joe looked across the room at Luke, who grinned and pulled a large box out of the cupboard. When Joe looked back up at him hopefully, Ianto couldn't help but chuckle.

"All right. Cocoa Pops it is."

"Ianto, is it going to upset him if we pour milk on the cereal?" Sarah Jane asked in a low voice, and Ianto's face fell.

"Probably. Perhaps he can just have them dry…"

"You can't do that!" Luke burst out. "Half the point is being able to drink the chocolate milk at the end. Look…"

He pulled a bottle of milk from the fridge and brought it to the table, where he poured a large glass. Then, with Joe watching warily, he drank more than half the contacts in one long swallow. By the time he put the glass down, the fearful and worried look on Joe's face had been replaced by one of new realisation.

"See?" Luke said. "It's okay. It's good."

"Okay," Joe echoed, visibly relaxing. Luke filled a bowl with Cocoa Pops and milk, and handed Joe a spoon. Soon, boy and man were engrossed in eating the cereal.

"Your son is very smart," Ianto murmured, and Sarah Jane smiled proudly.

"Thankyou. He's a special boy. Tell me, Ianto, does Joe remember anything about himself yet? Anything at all?"

"No… Just fragments, really. He remembered yesterday that his name isn't really Joe, but at the same time he can't remember what his real name is. He's starting to talk more freely, though. He's trying hard to think for himself."

"That's quite a leap forward."

"Yes, it is. He's doing well, considering how long Torchwood had him locked away."

Sarah Jane glanced towards the table, and burst out laughing. Luke had lifted his bowl and was drinking the left-over milk. Joe had tried to emulate him, but had tipped the bowl too far and ended up with the contents all down his front.

"Joe!" Ianto cried out, feeling embarrassed and annoyed at the same time. "Look at you! You've spilt it all over you. That's a fine way to behave when you're a guest in someone else's home."

It came out sounding a little harsher than he'd intended, but his nerves were already frayed with worry. He really needed Joe to behave like an adult, and not a child.

"Ianto, it's fine," Sarah Jane said quietly, noticing the way that Joe's face fell at the chastising.

"No, it isn't," Ianto growled. "I don't even have a spare change of clothes for myself, let alone for him. He just can't go making messes like this!"

A loud, hiccoughing sob snapped Ianto out of his growing tirade, and he looked around to see large tears rolling down Joe's cheeks.

"I'm sorry," Joe choked out. "Sorry, Yan toe. Please don't…"

He trailed off, shaking and struggling to control the sobs.

"Don't what?" Luke asked, puzzled.

"Please don't take me back," Joe managed to blurt out before he dissolved into a fresh wave of tears.

"Oh gods," Ianto groaned, feeling sick as he realised his mistake. "Cariad, no, of course I'm not going to take you back there. Don't cry, Joe, please…"

Ignoring the sticky mess that was saturating Joe's top, Ianto pulled him into a fierce hug. He couldn't help but be bemused at the difference between Joe now, and the Joe who had killed Branton and Bourke so ruthlessly. Looking at Joe now, it was hard to imagine him being capable of killing a bug, let alone two grown men. And yet that was where he was at, mentally and emotionally – unable to control his emotions, and fluctuating wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other as a result.

Not for the first time, and not for the last, Ianto found himself wondering what Joe had been like as a mature adult in complete control of his own emotions.

"I'm sorry, love," Ianto murmured as Joe cried into his shoulder. "I'm so sorry. It's not your fault."

He sensed movement, and glanced up to see Sarah Jane had pulled a chair around to sit close. Her expression was one of concern and sympathy, and Ianto was relieved to see all doubts gone.

"You were right to come with him, Ianto. He needs you. All of this would have simply been too much, otherwise."

"I'm not so sure that it's not too much anyway," Ianto said bitterly. "For him and me. We really weren't ready for this, but I can't help wondering when there might have been another chance. Plus, it terrifies me to think what they would have done to Joe for killing Bourke and Branton."

"You did the right thing," she assured him, "and we'll do everything we can to keep him safe until the Doctor comes back. But Ianto, have you thought about what you're going to do once this is all done with? Because you must know it won't be safe for you in London."

"I have family in Wales," Ianto murmured. "I'll go to them for as long as I need to." He drew back slowly to look at Joe. The tears had ceased, but he was still looking very sorry for himself. "Joe? C'mon now, look at me."

Slowly, Joe raised his eyes to look at Ianto.

"I'm sorry," Ianto told him gently. "I shouldn't have growled at you."

"Not mad…?" Joe asked hesitantly, and Ianto smiled warmly at him.

"No, I'm not mad at you. I promise. Now, how about we get you cleaned up?"

"Bubble bath!" Joe burst out suddenly, hope lighting up his eyes. Ianto grimaced.

"You might just have to put up with a plain bath today. I didn't have time to get the bubble formula from the bathroom before we left."

"You've been giving him bubble baths?" Sarah asked in amusement. Ianto smiled and shrugged.

"I wanted to make it fun for him. Give him something to look forward to. He can cope without it for now, though."

Sarah Jane eyed Joe's disappointed expression, and smiled.

"Well, it just so happens that I have a bottle of bubble bath mixture tucked away for special circumstances, and I think this definitely qualifies. Luke, you show Ianto and Joe to the bathroom, and I'll go and find it."

* * *

Ten minutes later, Joe was bathing happily while Ianto washed his tee-shirt.

"If you'll give me sizes," Sarah Jane told him quietly, "then I can go out and buy each of you a few changes of clothes."

Ianto looked thoroughly embarrassed at the thought.

"I can't let you do that! The money… My account will probably be frozen by now. I have no money to give you…."

A hand came to rest on his shoulder, silencing his protests, and Sarah Jane spoke quietly.

"Did I say I expected you to pay me? I don't. And before you go there, it's impolite to ask a lady about her financial circumstances."

Ianto reddened even more, but the look on his face was one of capitulation.

"Sorry, Ma'am. It's just that when I started looking after Joe, there was no one else I could turn to for help or support. Now, there seems to be people everywhere willing to help. It's all a little bit much to take in."

"I understand. And, enough of this 'Ma'am' business. It's just Sarah Jane."

Ianto sighed softly, and his shoulders slumped in defeat.

"Thankyou, Sarah Jane."

She smiled warmly at him.

"It's my pleasure."

Silence fell, and Sarah Jane watched carefully as Ianto fidgeted nervously over the washing machine. She was just getting ready to ask what was wrong when he spoke of his own accord.

"Do you really think he'll be willing to take Joe with him?"

She didn't need to ask who Ianto was talking about. It was fairly obvious.

"I believe he will, if only to find a safe haven for him. You have to understand, Ianto. The Doctor is wonderful, but he can also be so very cruel. You say you believe he left Joe behind. I don't doubt that you're right, but as to the actual circumstances? We can't possibly know what they were."

"I can't accept that Joe did anything to be warrant being abandoned."

"Neither can I, but you and I both know how perspectives can differ. Perhaps to Joe it might have seemed like abandonment, but maybe the Doctor thought he was performing an act of kindness in leaving Joe behind. We can't possibly know for certain until we actually find him."

Ianto stared down at his hands, either unwilling or unable to look her in the eye.

"Are you trying to say that the Doctor might not be willing to take Joe with him?"

Sarah Jane sighed.

"I don't know what will happen. I suppose that all I'm trying to say is that the Doctor can be extremely unpredictable, and we need to be prepared for that."

"Joe has been a prisoner of Torchwood for nearly one hundred and seven years, Sarah Jane. Whatever the Doctor thought he was doing when he left Joe behind, it doesn't justify that. He has to make this right. He's the only one who can."

"I don't know about that," Sarah Jane said with a sad smile as she reached over and squeezed his hands gently. "I think you're doing a pretty good job yourself."

He managed a weak smile, but any further conversation was stifled when Luke's voice suddenly reached them.

"Wait! Stop! At least put a towel on!"

Ianto and Sarah Jane exchanged startled looks seconds before Joe burst into the laundry, dripping wet and covered randomly with soapy bubbles, and absolutely stark naked.

"Joe!" Ianto exclaimed, feeling his face heat up with embarrassment. "What on earth…?"

"Jack!" Joe burst out, an expression of wild excitement lighting up his face. Ianto's breath caught as he instantly realised what his charge was telling him.

"Jack? Your name is Jack?"

His charge nodded wildly.

"I remember. They called me Jack. It's Jack. I'm Jack!"

There was no last name forthcoming, so Ianto assumed that was all he remembered thus far. He watched bemusedly as Joe… No, he chided himself. As _Jack_ stood there in all his naked glory, with the biggest grin Ianto could ever recall seeing on his face.

He was waiting, Ianto realised suddenly, not just for verbal acknowledgement, but an obligatory hug into the bargain. Something that Ianto was simply not mentally prepared to do while Jack stood there, butt naked.

Luke had appeared behind him, towel in hand and an amused smirk on his face. Ianto took it and wrapped it quickly around Jack's waist.

"C'mon, Joe…"

"Jack!"

"Sorry, Jack. C'mon, let's get some clothes on you, and then we can celebrate. Okay?" He smiled apologetically at Sarah Jane as he herded Jack out of the laundry.

"Sorry about this. Won't happen again."

Sarah Jane didn't even attempt to suppress a grin as she watched Ianto and Jack exit the laundry.

"Don't be." Once they'd gone, though, she turned to her son. "Do you know what triggered that memory, Luke?"

"I'm not sure," Luke answered with a shrug. "I was talking to him while he was in the bath, and I started to tell him about the Slitheen. He got really quiet at first. But then suddenly he yelled out 'Margaret', and the next thing I know, he's climbing out of the bath and running down here to find Ianto."

"Slitheen?" Sarah Jane mused. "I wonder… Oh well, it's of no consequence now. Luke, do you think you could stay here with Ianto and Joe while I go out and get them some extra clothes?"

"Sure Mum. And it's Jack, remember? Not Joe."

She laughed softly.

"You're right. I must try to remember that. Oh, and perhaps you'd best call Clyde and the others, and tell them today isn't a very good day to visit. I think the less people who know that Jack and Ianto are here, the better off we'll all be."

* * *

"Was I bad again?" Jack asked tentatively as Ianto bustled him back into the bathroom. Ianto paused to look him directly in the eye, and smiled softly.

"No, you're not bad, Jack. Not at all, and I promise I'm not mad at you. I'm just not sure how I can make you understand that you can't just walk around with no clothes on, and letting everyone see you naked!"

Jack looked down at his own body, clearly puzzled.

"Why? Is something wrong with me?"

"No! Gods, no. Why would you ask that?"

"But… why don't you want to look at me?"

Ianto felt his face heat up again. There was a loaded question…

"I like you, Joe…"

"Jack."

Ianto rolled his eyes.

"Sorry. I like you, Jack, but you still need to wear clothes. And no, there's nothing wrong with you. Please, just try to understand. We usually only let other people see us without clothes when we love them."

Jack looked quizzically at Ianto.

"Well… I love you. Do you love me?"

Ianto felt his stomach drop. How the hell had they gotten to this point?

"I… I'm not talking about love between two friends, and that's what we are, Jack. We're friends. No, I mean love between two people who want to spend the rest of their lives together."

"Forever?" Jack asked, his brow furrowing as he struggled to grasp what Ianto was trying to say. Ianto reached up to gently grasp Jack's shoulders.

"Look, don't worry about it, okay? All that's important is right here and now, and all you need to know is that I'm going to take care of you. I promise you that much."

Jack's face fell.

"You… don't love me?"

The confusion and hurt was more than Ianto could bear to see in Jack's face, especially knowing that Jack probably didn't fully understand what he was asking. He lifted his hands to cup Jack's cheeks, and leaned in to press his lips lightly to Jack's.

"I love you, Jack. Now stop fretting, and let me find something for you to wear."

* * *

Half an hour later found Jack sitting with Luke in the lounge room, watching television. Jack wore Ianto's sweater, while Ianto was wearing a jumper that Sarah Jane had bought for Luke to grow into. It was a bit of a tight fit, but Ianto wasn't complaining. He supposed that as long as they didn't need to cut him out of it, it wasn't that big a deal in the grand scheme of things.

He was alone for the time being, keeping watch over Luke and Jack while Sarah Jane went clothes shopping for them. He'd ceased objecting, mostly because they really did need at least a couple of changes of clothes – especially if Jack was going to prove to be a messy eater.

And of course, measuring him for clothes sizes had turned out to be an amusing exercise in itself, as Jack had turned out to be quite ticklish in some places. Ianto still found himself smiling at the memory of Jack giggling madly, and wriggling in a mock attempt to escape.

Fresh laughter interrupted his train of thought, and he looked in on Jack and Luke to check they were okay. Both man and boy were watching what looked like a Looney Tunes cartoon, and were laughing raucously at the images on screen. Chuckling to himself in amusement at their simple delight, Ianto retreated to the kitchen and was just getting ready to brew a fresh pot of coffee when the phone rang.

"I've got it!" Luke called out, and bounded through into the kitchen. Ianto watched with a mixture of concern and curiosity as Luke answered the call.

"Hello…? Brigadier! No, Mum's not here right now… Oh. Uh… Yes, sir. He is. Just a moment." He covered the mouthpiece of the phone, and turned to Ianto. "It's the Brigadier, Ianto. He wants to talk to you."

Ianto took the phone, puzzled and more than a little bit nervous.

"Hello…?"

"_Ianto Jones, I presume?_"

Ianto knew from what Sylvia had told him that the Brigadier was retired from UNIT, but the man's voice gave away no hint of his mature age. His voice was strong and authoritative, and had Ianto wanted to stand to attention.

"Yes, sir. I'm he."

"_Good. A mutual friend asked me to contact you, as it's rather too dangerous for her to do so right now_."

"Sylvia," Ianto murmured.

"_That's right. Heard from her early this morning. Seems you and your… friend have sent Torchwood into quite an uproar_."

Ianto felt a rush of pride on hearing that. He had to admit that he quite liked the idea of Torchwood in an uproar. Underlying that, though, was a greater sense of dread. He was terribly afraid for the friends who had aided their escape, and for the wrath that Yvonne Hartman was sure to bring down on them if they were recaptured.

"Should I be worried?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant. On the other end of the line, the Brigadier laughed.

"_Yes, you should be worried, boy. And I personally don't like the fact that you're putting Sarah Jane and her boy at risk. Although, I suppose I can't complain, since I'm the one who put you on to her in the first place_."

Ianto bit his tongue, and told himself sternly that at least the Brigadier had the humility to accept some degree of responsibility. Instead, he asked a question that was weighing heavily on his mind.

"Sir, did Sylvia tell you anything about the people who helped us?"

"_I'm afraid not… except for one. Does the name Tomas mean anything to you?_"

Ianto felt sick.

"Yes, it does. He helped us to escape last night. He gave me his car so that we'd have a chance at getting away."

"_Well, apparently he is currently in Torchwood custody, awaiting interrogation_."

Ianto couldn't quite hold back a low groan. Even coming from Archives, he knew what that meant. In Torchwood, interrogation inevitably equalled torture.

"_Go to ground, Mr Jones. Take **him**, and hide for as long as you can. The best you can do now is hope to wait it out_."

"That's not going to be easy, sir."

"_No, but if you value your lives, you'll do it. This is no game, boy. People are going to die. You'd just better make sure it isn't you getting the bullet_."

Ianto rubbed a hand over his eyes. He could feel the distinct beginnings of a headache.

"That's not a comforting thought."

"_It wasn't meant to be. It's the cold, hard truth. Now, Sarah Jane will be moving you both tonight to a new location. I don't know where to, nor do I want to know. I just want to give you a warning. Whatever you do, **do not** try and contact anyone. Not family, friends or colleagues. You have to become a ghost. Both of you. Manage that, and you may just survive this._"

"Sir… how much do you know about him?"

He deliberately avoided using Jack's name, purely for safety's sake. The Brigadier answered in a slightly subdued tone.

"_About as much as anyone else in Torchwood does. You may not be aware of this, but there was a brief period in the 1970's when Torchwood and UNIT actually cooperated with each other. I was brought into the loop regarding him, and I was permitted to observe him a few times as well. The way they treated him disgusted me, but I had no authority to stop it. Not to mention that he would have been no better off in UNIT's custody. In the end, I just let it go and could only hope that someone might come along who saw him as a man, and not just a freak of nature to experiment on_."

"If they learn you're helping us now…"

"_Yes, well, I know how to be careful. See that you do the same. Now, put the boy back on the phone. I need to speak with him_."

Ianto barely heard Luke's side of the ensuing conversation. His head was spinning with what he'd just heard, and the one thing he was certain of was that UNIT was to be feared as much as Torchwood. Both institutions clearly saw Jack as a sub-human entity, and they had to be kept away from him at all costs.

He had no idea where Sarah Jane planned to take them once night fell, but he fully intended to take the Brigadier's words of warning to heart. He and Jack would go to ground, and disappear. He just hoped and prayed that the Doctor came soon, because he honestly didn't know how long he could keep Jack hidden away before the forced seclusion became just another form of imprisonment.

* * *

_tbc..._


	14. No Greater Gift

Yvonne Hartman walked along the corridor at a steady pace, her heels clipping lightly on the floor. She looked for all the world like she was on her way to an ordinary board meeting. Except that nothing was every ordinary in Torchwood. She stepped into a lift, and tapped her foot impatiently as it took her down into the lower levels of the Torchwood Tower. Waiting for her at the bottom was an extremely sour-faced Robin Spence.

"Well?" she asked with a primness that was entirely unsuited to her.

"He's admitted helping them. Still insists that Adams wasn't involved, but I know he's lying. It's only a matter of time before he breaks."

She passed him without another word, moving down the corridor at a speed that shouldn't have been possible, given the delicate high heels she was wearing. They entered a room at the far end of the corridor, and Yvonne calmly approached the bloodied and battered figure that was tied to a chair in the middle of the room. There she stood, observing him with detached interest.

"Mr Dyer. You've been extremely disloyal to the institute. You owe us far better than this betrayal."

Tomas gazed up at her through bruised and swollen eyes. He had taken quite a beating prior to her arrival, and he could barely concentrate on what was being said, let alone reply coherently.

"Fuck you. Don't owe this place anything."

"You owe it everything. Torchwood literally recruited you off the streets, got you cleaned up and sorted out. You'd be dead by now, if not for the institute."

"Like I said… Fuck you."

She sighed, sounding disturbingly like a long-suffering parent who had finally come to the end of her patience.

"I had hoped that you might have seen sense by now, and proven to be a little more cooperative. You know that all you need to do is tell us the whole truth, tell us who was involved, and we can all get back to our usual routines."

Tomas smiled a particularly bloody and somewhat predatory smile that was made all the more gruesome for the fact that he was missing at least three teeth.

"You think I'm dumb enough to fall for that? I know you're going to kill me. I knew that when I took Ianto and Joe out of this fucking hell hole. I'm a dead man, so why don't you just do whatever you're going to do, and get it over with?"

Yvonne looked down at the young man like he was a particularly interesting type of bug.

"You're really prepared to die for that freak. Interesting."

"He's not a freak, you demented bitch," Tomas slurred angrily. "And he deserves better than this place. So yeah, you can kill me. I don't give a fuck. I'm glad for what I did, and I'll be damned if I help you get him back."

"You are right," she confirmed passively. "I am going to kill you… or at least, have you killed. How painful it is, though, is entirely dependent on you. I'm giving you one last opportunity, Mr Dyer. Tell me who aided you."

Tomas let his breath out in a rush , blood bubbling out through his lips. The beating he'd suffered had cracked a rib, which had in turn pierced a lung. He was already dying, and there was little Yvonne could do to him now that could possibly make it worse. He hoped…

"I got a call in the night from Ianto. He said he'd already tried to call Gage, but couldn't get a hold of him. He said he needed help because Joe had done something. He wouldn't say what over the phone. When I got there, Bourke and Branton were both dead. Ianto said that they attacked him and Joe, and that Joe killed them to protect him."

"And you believed him."

Tomas glared up at her, and had to resist an urge to spit at her.

"I didn't have any reason not to. He called me because he didn't know what to do. We went to see what was on the CCTV footage, and that was when we found those two idiots had turned off the CCTV footage for all of the Secure Archives. It was then that I told Ianto that he should get Joe out of there."

"You're telling me that it was your idea? Not Mr Jones'?"

Tomas snorted, and then coughed painfully.

"Yes! It was my fucking idea! All that dumb kid was worried about was what you'd do to Joe for killing Bourke and Branton. The idiot couldn't see the opportunity that was staring him right in the face. So I took them out, gave them my car and told them to get as far away as they could. With any luck, Ianto got air tickets before you froze his bank account, and they're halfway to America by now."

Yvonne tapped her foot lightly on the floor, the only sign of her irritation.

"That was very noble of you, Mr Dyer. Stupid, but noble. I do believe you, though, if only because I don't think Gage Adams would have been foolish enough to show up to work today if he had been involved. So, it's all down to you."

Tomas stared back at her in tired resignation.

"It's down to me. So what're you gonna do?"

She turned abruptly to Spence.

"Kill him. Be quick about it, though. I need you back in time for the first tests."

"What tests?" Tomas asked hoarsely. He didn't especially like the look in her eyes as she spoke, but at the same time he felt an irresistible tug of curiosity. She smiled down at him.

"A potential new power source, Mr Dyer. We're living in very exciting times. It's a shame you won't be around to witness it."

With that, she turned on her heel and stalked out of the room. Tomas watched blearily as Spence took her place in front of him, gun in hand.

"Go on," Spence said with an ugly sneer. "Beg for your life."

"Fuck you," Tomas mumbled, his head starting to droop. "Just do it."

Spence leaned in a little, grabbing him by the chin and forcing him to look up.

"You, my lad, are going to be an example to everyone in Torchwood. An example of just what disloyalty gets you. The next time someone gets cocky and starts thinking they're outside the system, it'll be your name we use to scare them back into line."

"Can I say something, Doc?" Tomas asked in a raspy whisper. It was getting hard to breathe, now, and he could feel his damaged lung filling with blood. Spence leaned in closer still.

"You going to tell me where they are, Dyer? C'mon, be a smart boy. Tell me, and I'll end it for you with just one bullet."

"If I don't?" Tomas asked.

"I might just miss, and have to leave you here to bleed out. Your choice, you little prick."

Tomas coughed, and tasted blood on his lips. He suspected he was going to drown in his own blood long before he had any chance to die by exsanguination.

"Can't… Can't tell you what I don't know. But can tell you this…"

"Yes?" Spence asked eagerly. A second later, he reeled backwards as Tomas head-butted him in the face, effectively smashing his nose and mouth.

"You're a fucking sadistic bastard, and I hope to God that Joe comes back one day and breaks your fucking neck," Tomas spat, glaring at Spence through a haze of blood. Spence howled in rage and pain. Lifting his gun, he fired not one, but multiple bullets into Tomas's head and torso. He was dead almost instantly.

Wiping blood from his face on the back of his sleeve, Spence glowered at the young man's lifeless body before walking out without another word.

* * *

"Tomas is dead."

Shocked silence descended over the group in the Secure Archives tea room. Enid had delivered the news, and her normally pale face was flushed red and her eyes swollen from crying. She stumbled over and sat down with a thud, her hands over her face as she began to cry afresh.

"How do you know?" Tristan asked in dismay as he wrapped a supportive arm around her shoulders. It was well known amongst the Secure Archives team that Tomas and Enid had been dating for nearly eight months, now, and their relationship was just beginning to get serious.

"Alison Tate told me. She said she had to help collect his body for storage. She said he'd been beaten… and shot. That… that it was punishment for helping Ianto and Joe to escape."

Several pairs of eyes automatically turned to Gage, who was looking thoroughly sick to his stomach.

"That should've been me… I should be the one who's dead. Not Tomas. I was the one who… Mmff!"

He got nothing more out before one of the other men clamped a hand squarely over his mouth.

"Don't," Alex Sutton growled in a low, threatening voice. "Don't you _dare_ disrespect Tomas by giving yourself up now."

Gage pulled away, and scrubbed his hands over his face.

"He didn't deserve it," he said shakily. "He deserved a goddamn medal, not death by fucking Torchwood! Damn this place to hell!"

"Let's just hope that Ianto and Joe are safe, wherever they are," Tristan whispered as he held Enid while she wept. "Because Hartman will tear this city apart trying to find them."

"I'm not so sure about that," Alex murmured. "After today's tests, I heard her priorities have altered slightly. Word is that she wants Joe back, but he isn't exactly top of her to-do list right now."

"What are these tests?" Gage asked. "Is it anything to do with that giant sphere in Vault Three?"

"No, this is something else. You know my sister works in Regular Archives? Well, Tam is friends with someone who works up in the top of the Tower, where these tests are happening. I think her name's Adeola, or something like that. Tam said that her friend couldn't tell her exactly what it was all about, but she did say that the power that was generated by today's test caused some sort of apparition to appear. Apparently Hartman plans on running the same tests every day in about a month's time, and boosting the power a bit more each time to see what happens."

"I hope that crazy bitch knows what she's doing," Gage muttered, his mind still consumed with thoughts of Tomas. "Although, if it takes her attention away from finding Joe, then great. As long as Ianto and Joe are safe. That's all that matters."

* * *

_to be continued..._  



	15. A New Home

A/N: _I know this is my first update in a while, but it's NaNoWriMo, and I've been focused on that. The good news is that I've achieved 50,000 words, and now have the leisure of returning to my other unfinished fics. And yes, my NaNo fic is a Torchwood story, which will be posted here in due course. In the meantime, rest assured knowing I haven't abandoned this story, or "Ashes"._

_

* * *

_

The day that Jack and Ianto spent in Sarah Jane's home was possibly the happiest and most relaxing that Ianto could remember having for a long time. For just a little while, it was almost possible to forget that they were on the run, and just enjoy the sanctuary that had been provided to them.

Jack, for his part, had struck up quite a friendship with Luke. Ianto didn't know what the boy's story was, and he had no intention of pressing Sarah Jane on the subject. All he knew was that the boy spoke with the sort of high level techno-babble that he would have expected from someone with a doctorate in astrophysics. Whether Jack really understood much of what Luke was saying to him, Ianto had no idea. By lunch, though, Jack was tagging along after Luke like an awe-struck little brother.

Sarah Jane, in particular, had been especially amused to catch sight of Jack wrapping Luke up in a huge hug. The bemused teen had simply taken it in his stride, not reacting even when Jack planted a loud, wet kiss on his cheek.

"He tends to be extremely affectionate with the people he likes," Ianto explained, somewhat nervously. Sarah Jane smiled wryly.

"So I see. He appears to be a very tactile person."

"Yes, and that's a big change in itself. When I first started taking care of him, he wouldn't let anyone touch him. Now, he craved the contact, and I don't like depriving him. I just hope he doesn't frustrate your son."

"Oh, don't you worry about Luke. I think you'll find he finds Jack just as fascinating as Jack finds him. He won't mind Jack following him around at all."

Ianto looked through the archway just in time to see Luke seat himself next to Jack on the couch and begin to read from what looked like a copy of Tolkien's "The Hobbit". Curious, Ianto ventured into the room for a closer look.

"Gage had started reading that one to Jack just a few days ago," he mused. "Did you pick it, Luke?"

"No, it wasn't my choice," Luke answered with a smile. "Jack's the one who picked it."

"He knew what book it was?" Ianto asked in surprise, and in answer to the question Jack took the book from Luke's hands and pointed to the title on the cover.

"Hobbit. Hob. Bit."

"I suspect your friend Gage may have been helping Jack to relearn how to read," Sarah Jane mused as Luke started to read again. Ianto felt his stomach knot up unpleasantly, and he hurried back into the kitchen before Jack could pick up on his sudden distress.

"God, I pray that Gage and Tomas are all right. They risked everything. I'm not sure what I'll do if something's happened to them."

"What you'll do is carry on," Sarah Jane told him sternly. "They would have understood the risks. If the worst has happened, then the best way you can honour them is to fight for yours and Jack's freedom. Especially Jack's."

Ianto nodded slowly in agreement.

"You're right. I know you're right. It's just so hard. You know, if someone had told me twelve months ago that one day I'd be on the run from Torchwood, I would have thought they were crazy. I used to think that Torchwood was the be-all and end-all. God, I was so blind."

"Be thankful that you've had your eyes opened," Sarah Jane said, and Ianto sighed softly.

"I am. Believe me, I am."

* * *

Evening fell, and Ianto found himself readying Jack to move again. The urgency and sense of panic was gone, though, giving Ianto a chance to think everything through carefully and methodically and ensuring they left nothing behind.

"Right," he murmured, after having packed the supplies that Sarah Jane had provided them with into a bag with the clothes she'd bought for them earlier that day. "I think that's everything."

He felt a tap on his arm, and looked questioningly at Jack.

"Mm? What is it?"

"Bubbles?"

Ianto chuckled, and pulled out a new bottle of bubble bath formula for him to see.

"Don't worry, Jack. Sarah Jane made sure we're well stocked. I just hope that there's a bath where we're going." He paused, eyeing the formula in his hand. "I suppose there must be, otherwise she wouldn't have given us the bottles to take with us. Now, have you got your dog and blanket?"

Jack held one up in each hand for Ianto to see before tucking them back in against his chest.

"Good," Ianto murmured. "I think we're ready to go, then."

He lifted the bag off the bed, and led Jack downstairs, to where Sarah Jane waited with Luke.

"All set?" she asked.

"More or less," Ianto answered ruefully. Sarah Jane smiled affectionately at him.

"It's going to be fine, Ianto. As long as you're both careful, and you stick together, you'll be fine."

"Where are we going?" Jack asked softly. Sarah Jane walked over to him and took his hands gently in her own.

"You're going to stay with someone else until the Doctor comes back. When he does, he'll be able to take you away to a place where Torchwood won't be able to reach you. Where you'll be safe. Until then, though, you need to be good and do as Ianto says. Can you do that?"

Jack nodded, his eyes watering very slightly as he tried to put up a brave front. Sarah Jane smiled warmly at him, and drew him into a warm hug.

"You'll be all right, sweetheart. I'm sure of it."

Jack hugged her back clumsily, snuffling a little as he tried hard to control his emotions. When Sarah Jane finally drew back, Luke came forward and hugged Jack without hesitation.

"I'm not saying goodbye," Luke told him. "I'm just going to say see you later. So, see you later, Jack. You take care of yourself and Ianto, okay?"

"Okay," Jack answered, his voice muffled as he buried his face in Luke's shoulder. When they parted, Jack's eyes were not the only red ones in the room.

"All right, then," Sarah Jane said decisively. "Time to go."

* * *

They were in the car for at least forty-five minutes. Ianto deliberately ignored both the time and the route. It would do him no good to know where they were going, or how to get there, because once there both he and Jack would be safe only for as long as they remained inside and out of sight.

Ianto sat in the backseat with Jack, holding him in an effort to keep him calm. The upheaval of the last twenty-four hours had finally begun to take its toll. Jack had burst into a flood of tears as the car pulled out of Sarah Jane's driveway, wailing that he wanted to stay with Luke.

He'd settled down only when Sarah Jane had promised to bring Luke to visit him at their new location. Whether she intended to honour that promise, Ianto had no idea. It calmed Jack sufficiently so that they could continue on their way without attracting undue attention, though, and that was all that mattered.

After his outburst, Jack sat in relative silence, clinging to Ianto and staring out the window at the passing scenery. It was well and truly dark by the time Sarah Jane stopped the car.

"This is it. Welcome to the Powell Estate, gentlemen."

Ianto opened the car door onto a rather bleak looking housing estate that was done no favours by the dark of night. The building was bland, at best, with many dark, unlit alcoves and shadowy spots. Perhaps it looked different during the day, but Ianto much doubted it. He had no complaints, though. His greatest hope was that Hartman believed he'd left London with Jack – maybe even attempted to flee the country altogether. He hoped and prayed that she didn't suspect they were still basically in central London.

In this respect, Ianto was grateful for the utter ordinariness of the Estate. Surely a place like this was one of the last places that Torchwood would expect them to be.

"Come with me," Sarah Jane told them in a low, urgent voice. "Quickly now, don't dawdle."

Realising that Jack had yet to vacate the car, Ianto turned and took his hand to try and urge him out. The older man resisted, a fleeting look of fear and panic on his face.

"C'mon, Jack," Ianto said, making a real effort to keep any hint of impatience out of his voice. The last thing he needed was for Jack to dig his heels in like an obstinate child, and refuse to move. Jack moved, if extremely reluctantly and, with bags in hand, they followed Sarah Jane into the Estate.

Up three or four flights of concrete stairs, Sarah Jane led them along a balconied area until she finally halted in front of one of the few doors that hadn't been defaced by graffiti, and rapped once on the wood. It was answered by a middle-aged woman with bleach blond hair, and just a fraction too much make-up.

She looked Sarah Jane up and down critically before speaking in a gruff voice that masked a softer attitude.

"Well, where are they, then?"

Ianto stepped forward into the light that spilled out from within the apartment, pulling a reluctant Jack along with him.

"Jackie, this is Ianto and Jack," Sarah Jane made the introductions. "Boys, this is Jackie. She's kindly agreed to let you stay with her until the Doctor comes back."

"And it had better be soon, believe me," Jackie growled in genuine anger. "He'd better not have my Rose away from home for too much longer, or I'll give him a right slap." Abruptly, she stepped aside. "Well, you'd best come in, then."

Sarah Jane hurried in and Ianto started to follow her, only to be pulled back by Jack.

"What's wrong?" Ianto asked worriedly. He was increasingly anxious to get out of the open, and away from any potential prying eyes. The longer Jack stalled outside, the more exposed they were and the greater the danger of being caught. Jack looked past Ianto into the apartment, fear in his pale blue eyes.

"Angry lady," he whimpered, and Ianto sighed wearily.

"She's not angry at you, I promise. Now please, come inside, Jack. It's not safe out here for us."

Reluctant as ever, Jack nonetheless allowed Ianto to lead him into the apartment.

* * *

Despite his apprehensions about the Estate, Ianto was pleasantly surprised to find themselves in a warm and homely space, brightly lit but not in the same sterile way that the Torchwood building was perpetually lit. They were led through to a small lounge room, that was furnished with comfortable looking armchairs, and lots of pictures. Pictures, Ianto realised with a start, that were of the same Rose in the photo with the Doctor…

"You're Rose's mother?" Ianto blurted out, startled. Jackie raised an eyebrow at him questioningly, and Ianto felt his face heat up a little. "Sorry."

Shaking off the apparently odd comment, Jackie eyed the two of them up and down.

"All right. Let's take a good look at you. Mm, not bad. Not bad at all. 'Course, I only have one spare bed. One of you will have to make do with the lounge, because I'm not giving up my bed."

"We would never expect you to, Ma'am," Ianto said quickly, anxious to defuse her aggravation before it began to affect Jack. He was skittish enough as it was, and the last thing Ianto needed was for him to panic and bolt… or even just panic. "Let Jack have the bed. I can sleep on the floor beside him."

Jackie turned her critical gaze on Jack, staring at him piercingly. He returned it for all of two seconds before dropping his gaze to the floor and clutching anxiously at Ianto's hand. The younger man took it without hesitation, squeezing gently.

"Is he all right?" she asked, puzzled. Ianto looked over questioningly at Sarah Jane, who looked apologetically back at him.

"I wasn't able to tell her anything about Jack. There just wasn't the time."

Ianto swallowed an urge to sigh. It wasn't Sarah Jane's fault, and he knew he should have been prepared to give explanations.

"Jack's been a prisoner for a long time. He was abused and experimented on, and basically tortured. No, he's not in his right mind, thanks to what was done to him. He needs care, and a lot of love and understanding. He's frightened, confused, and I promised to keep him safe. I need your help to do that. Please, help me?"

Jackie walked over to stand in front of Jack, and gently encouraged him to look at her.

"I'm a mum, and if there's anything that I've got in spades, it's love and understanding. So don't you worry, sweetheart. I'm going to help take care of you. All right? You're safe here, and I won't let anyone or anything hurt you."

She reached out and gently drew him into a warm and comforting embrace. For a split second, Ianto thought Jack was going to reject her, but even as he watched, Jack literally crumbled against her, and his arms went around her in a clumsy but heartfelt hug.

"Thankyou," Jack whispered tearfully.

* * *

_tbc..._


	16. Random Memories

_One week later_

Ianto awoke to an empty room – Jack's bed was unoccupied. A weary smile filled Ianto's face as he hauled himself up off his mattress bed on the floor. He wasn't concerned with Jack's absence, though; he knew exactly where to find him.

Their very first night in Jackie Tyler's home had been a mixed experience. Whilst it was a relief to know they were finally able to stop running for a while, Jack nevertheless suffered a nightmare severe enough to leave him screaming in terror. Ianto had still been trying to calm him when Jackie rushed in. Before Ianto had been able to utter a word of apology for the disturbance, Jackie had bustled the sobbing Jack out of the bedroom.

By the time Ianto followed, she'd had Jack ensconced on the living room sofa with a cup of hot, sweet tea and her arms wrapped around him in a protective hug. She'd soon had him settled down, and eventually coaxed him back to bed, where she'd proceeded to sit with him until he fell asleep again. The rest of the night passed relatively peacefully, and Ianto had been torn between feeling relieved and jealous.

In the end, he went in favour of the former, and over the next few days found himself watching with interest as Jack gradually became enamoured with Rose's mother. She treated him like a son, and showed him a level of love and kindness that, until then, only Ianto had displayed towards him.

By the end of the first week, Ianto suspected there was little that Jack wouldn't do for Jackie Tyler. He loved her fiercely, and she gladly reciprocated.

Ianto took his time getting dressed, comfortable in the belief that Jack was being looked after by their formidable hostess. He eventually headed out to find the apartment's other two occupants in the kitchen. Jackie was cooking what looked and smelt to Ianto like a full fry-up, while Jack sat at the table with the morning newspaper. It was a peculiar image of domesticity, and Ianto had to make a concealed effort not to laugh. His amusement faded quickly, though, as he realised what was actually happening.

Far from it being simply for show, Jack was reading aloud from the newspaper, while Jackie listened. His efforts were stilted and Jackie frequently needed to help him, but he was reading.

Suddenly aware of Ianto's presence, Jack beamed up at him, and slapped a hand enthusiastically down onto the paper.

"I can read!"

Ianto couldn't help but be affected by Jack's innocent joy. He walked over to impart the obligatory morning hug, which Jack returned enthusiastically.

"Yes, you can," Ianto agreed. "And it sounds like you're doing brilliantly."

"'Course he can read," Jackie retorted. "He's always known, haven't you, sweetheart? Just needed a bit of a refresher, is all."

"Thankyou," Ianto told her sincerely, crossing over to hug her.

"Just doing what any mother would do for her boy," Jackie replied dismissively. "Since I never had a little boy of my own, and with Mickey gone and disappeared, you and Jack get the honour. And I know you have family of your own, but that doesn't mean I can't fuss over you. Now sit down. Breakfast is almost ready."

Ianto sat with a smile, but that smile quickly faded when he got a look at the expression on Jack's face.

"Jack? What is it? Do you remember something?"

The look on Jack's face was almost dazed. He stared blankly ahead, not acknowledging Ianto's query.

"Sweetheart?" Jackie asked gently, abandoning the oven to come over and see what was wrong. "What is it?"

"Mickey," Jack said abruptly, coming out of his reverie with a start. Jackie nodded, frowning slightly.

"Yes, Mickey Smith. He was Rose's boyfriend, before he came along. Why?"

"Mickey the idiot!" Jack suddenly burst out.

Ianto was sincerely grateful that he had nothing in his mouth at that moment – he was sure he would have spat it out across the table. As it was, the very air in his lungs caught and he had to struggle not to erupt into a coughing fit. Jackie, meanwhile, was staring open-mouthed at Jack, with an unreadable expression on her face.

"Jack!" Ianto said finally in shock. "Don't say that! That's very rude!"

Jack's reaction was predictable. At the admonishment, his lower lip took on a telltale tremble, and he cast his gaze downwards.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I'm bad, aren't I?"

All of a sudden, Jackie snapped out of her paralysis, and she leant down to hug Jack.

"No, you're not bad at all, sweetheart. It's fine, really. You just gave me a bit of a shock. That's what he always called Mickey. Mickey the idiot. What made you think to say that?"

Jack didn't seem to be able to answer, though. He frowned, as though trying to remember, but it only resulted in a familiar pain cutting through his skull. He shuddered violently, and sobbed in pain.

"Don't force yourself, Jack," Ianto told him. "It'll come to you when you're ready." And then, to Jackie, "Can we talk after breakfast?"

She didn't miss his tone, and quickly acquiesced.

"Sure."

* * *

Afterwards, Ianto made sure Jack was well occupied in the little living room, watching cartoons and munching on homemade biscuits. In the kitchen, Jackie and Ianto sat down to a long-awaited talk.

"I'm sorry," Ianto apologised. "I should have told you from the start. I'm fairly sure that Jack used to be a companion of the Doctor, and I think he travelled with him at the same time as your daughter. There's a photo in the Torchwood archives of Jack together with the Doctor and your daughter in Cardiff. It was taken about six to eight months ago."

"Six to eight months?" Jackie echoed with a frown. "How long as Jack been a prisoner, then?"

Ianto hesitated, wondering how much he could tell her without being thought insane. Jackie's expression hardened fractionally at the perceived reticence.

"Ianto Jones, you tell me right now!"

"Over a hundred years," Ianto admitted hoarsely. Jackie was silent for a good couple of minutes while she digested that, and Ianto could only wait in nervous silence.

"Is he human?" she asked finally, tonelessly.

"Yes, he is," Ianto answered quickly, and with fervour. "He is human, Jackie, I swear to you. But... he can't die. Not permanently. We don't know what happened to him, why or how, but it doesn't matter right now. He's basically just a little boy at the moment who needs to be protected and looked after. Whatever it is that's kept him alive for so long, it isn't his fault. Please believe me..."

"All right, hush now," Jackie told him gently. "It's all right. Wouldn't matter to me if you were both aliens, 'specially since my daughter's prancing around the universe with one. Anyway, I'd guessed that Jack must've travelled with them, at least for a little while. I knew they had someone else with them after Mickey came back from Cardiff... must've been nine or ten months back now. He was grumbling fit to die, moaning about some flash bloke. Couldn't get a name out of him, though. Then there was Christmas...."

"What happened at Christmas?" Ianto asked softly, thinking back to the terrifying experience with the thwarted Sycorax invasion. He had been one of those affected by the blood control, and he still shuddered at the memory of coming back to reality to find himself standing on the edge of the roof of the Torchwood Tower. Lisa had been clinging desperately to him, begging him to wake up.

He forced those thoughts away before he had a chance to feel any sort of guilt over Lisa. Jackie continued to talk, oblivious to his discomfort.

"Rose and the Doctor came back, and he was different. Different face, different personality, different everything. Anyway, I heard Mickey talking to Rose. He wanted to know what had happened to 'Captain Jack Flash', and Rose started to cry. Said the Doctor hadn't said so, but that she thought he was dead, that he'd been killed in their last battle. Mickey didn't ask again, and Rose never talked about him again. I decided not to ask, but now I reckon that it was Jack, and that they left him behind wherever because they thought he was dead."

"I hope that's what it was," Ianto said soberly, "because the alternative is unconscionable."

"The poor love," Jackie murmured. "Well, I just bet they'll be thrilled to see him again."

Ianto didn't share his doubts with her, but he couldn't help but wonder how it was in all the hundred and six years that Jack had been Torchwood's prisoner, that the apparently time travel-enabled Doctor had never found him. It didn't bode well at all in Ianto's way of thinking.

He shook himself out of his reverie and glanced into the living room. His heart nearly skipped a beat – Jack was no longer engrossed by the cartoons, but was instead standing at the window and peering out through the curtains.

"Jack!" Ianto burst out. "Get away from there, right now!"

Jack jumped in fright, startled by the unexpected reprimand. He stumbled back from the window as Ianto stormed over and pulled the curtains back across to shield them from any prying eyes. That done, he finally turned back to Jack with a frown.

"I told you, Jack, we have to stay out of sight! Do you want to go back?"

Jack hung his head in shame, but not before both Jack and Ianto saw tears welling up in his eyes.

"No," he mumbled miserably. "I just..."

"What?" Ianto pressed, making a concerted effort to control his frayed temper. "Go on, tell me."

"You'll yell at me again."

Ianto felt his stomach roll unpleasantly, realising that he had once again exploded verbally at Jack.

"No," he said finally after breathing in deeply to calm himself. "I promise not to yell. Now, cariad, tell me."

"I just want to see the sky," Jack choked out, and the tears finally overflowed and spilled down his cheeks.

"I'm sorry," Ianto whispered, pulling Jack into his arms and rubbing his back soothingly. "I am so sorry. I keep forgetting how hard this must be for you. We got you out of that place, but you're still not free."

"Just wanted to see the sun," Jack sobbed into Ianto's shoulder.

"I know," Ianto whispered. "I know you do. I promise you, Jack. When the Doctor comes, he'll take you away from here, and take you somewhere that you can be outside all the time, if that's what you want."

Abruptly, Jack tensed in his embrace.

"You'll come too, won't you?" he asked anxiously. "Yan? You'll come too."

"Come and sit down, love," Ianto murmured, leading Jack over to the couch. "Listen to me, now. Yes, I would love to come with you, but I can't."

"No..." Jack whimpered, but Ianto silenced him by pressing a finger to his lips.

"Listen. I have family here. This planet is my home. It's where I belong. You belong up there, in the stars. Do you understand?"

Large tears rolled down Jack's cheeks.

"No. Don't wanna leave you. I love you."

Ianto sighed and ruffled Jack's hair affectionately.

"I love you, too, Jack, but it doesn't change the fact that one day you're going to leave, and I can't come with you. Please try to understand."

Slowly, Jack rubbed at his eyes.

"It's not fair."

"No," Ianto agreed. "It's not. But whatever happens, don't ever forget that I do love you. Now, how about you try to be brave and give me a smile?"

With some effort, Jack managed a water smile, and Ianto chuckled softly at the sight.

"There, that's much better. Ah, Jack, you silly goose."

"Honk," Jack offered with a sheepish smile, and Ianto found himself laughing out loud in response.

"All right, you two," Jackie interjected finally. "I'm going out to get something for dinner. I expect you both to behave yourselves while I'm out."

"I think we can manage that," Ianto said with a smile, and Jack agreed. Once she'd gone, Ianto turned back to Jack.

"Tell me, Jack, do you remember anything more about the Doctor? About Rose?"

Jack's face scrunched up adorably.

"Rose... Pretty Rose likes to dance."

Ianto arched an eyebrow in curiosity.

"She does?"

Slowly, Jack let his breath out in one long hiss, and his face slackened, his pale blue eyes glazing over slightly.

"Glen Miller," he said in a voice that sounded like he was in some sort of a trance. Ianto felt his heart quicken.

"She liked Glen Miller?"

"Yes."

Jack's responses, although lucid enough, were still very simplistic. Ianto tried again, curious to see how far he could get.

"Did the Doctor dance too, Jack?"

"Not without a drink."

Ianto blinked, confused by the odd answer. He decided then against pressing for further information.

"Jack, are you still with me?"

He laid a hand lightly on the other man's shoulder, and then his cheek. Jack stirred, and his eyes blinked blearily at Ianto.

"Yan?"

"Do you remember what you just said?" Ianto asked. Confusion filled Jack's face, along with a healthy dose of fear.

"No... Was I being bad again?"

"No, love," Ianto assured him. "No, you weren't. You're being very good, and I'm very proud of you."

Jack's face literally glowed with pleasure, and he threw his arms around Ianto enthusiastically in a ferocious hug.

"I love you, Yan. Can I have another biscuit?"

Ianto laughed softly.

"Of course you can. Just one, though."

"No spoiling dinner," Jack said solemnly. Ianto ruffled his hair, drawing an undignified squawk from Jack.

"Do you want to watch some more TV? Or, if you like, I could read to you."

"I can read!" Jack insisted, and Ianto smiled indulgently.

"I know, Jack. I know you can."

* * *

_to be continued..._


	17. The Ghost Shifts

The first sign that Ianto had that not all was right in the world came after a couple of weeks spent in relative peace in the sanctity of Jackie Tyler's home. Ianto was busy in the kitchen, helping Jackie to make pie for dinner when Jack suddenly started screaming for him. Abandoning the potatoes he was peeling, Ianto ran into the lounge room where Jack was, expecting the worst.

Stumbling into the room, he found Jack cowering in the far corner of the room, shaking with fear.

"Jack, what is it?" Ianto asked anxiously, hurrying over and embracing him. "What's wrong?"

He was starting to suspect that Jack may have simply seen something on the television that had frightened him. A similar thing had happened just a couple of days ago when, in the process of channel surfing, he had come across a movie that depicted someone being tortured. It had taken the better part of the day to put an end to that particular panic attack – not to mention the nightmares that had plagued Jack throughout the night.

If this was going to keep happening, Ianto was going to seriously consider asking Jackie to invest in a child lock so that Jack would only be able to view cartoons and the like…

"Oh my god!"

Ianto turned abruptly at Jackie's exclamation, and finally saw what had sent Jack into a panic. On the other side of the room, there stood the silhouette of a man. There were no features visible – it was like looking at a shadow. It wasn't doing anything, just standing there, still and silent as a statue.

"What the hell is that?" Jackie burst out, backing away towards the archway that led into the kitchen.

"I don't know," Ianto answered. "I doubt it's anything good."

He was acutely aware of the panicked way that Jack was clutching at him, but it didn't concern him greatly. He was clutching at Jack with a rapidly increasing level of panic himself. His first and only thought was that this was some trick of Torchwood, and that they'd been found. His heart was starting to pound, and he realised with growing nausea that he fully expected Torchwood operatives to come crashing through the windows at any second, guns literally blazing.

"Yan toe," Jack said pleadingly, his eyes wide with terror as he stared at the featureless entity. "Make it go away!"

"I wish I could," Ianto said grimly, trying to guide Jack's head around so that he was looking away from the disturbing vision. "But I don't know what it is, Jack. I don't know how to make it go away."

Even as he spoke, though, he realised the entity was starting to lose its appearance of solidity.

"Look, it's fading!" Jackie exclaimed. "Almost like a ruddy ghost!"

Ianto lifted an eyebrow at the comparison, but refrained from asking Jackie what her basis of comparison was. She was right, though. The entity – creature – whatever it was – had almost completely vanished from sight. A moment later, there was no evidence left to suggest anything untoward had just happened.

Conscious of the fact that Jack had buried his face in his shoulder, Ianto murmured soothingly to him.

"Look, Jack. It's okay. It's gone."

Slowly, Jack raised his head to look and, though the relief on his face was palpable, Ianto could still read a very stark fear there.

"Was it them? The bad people?"

"I don't know," Ianto admitted. "But it's gone now. All right?"

"Not coming back?" Jack asked shakily. Ianto grimaced. That was not a promise he could reasonably make, no matter how much he wanted to offer reassurances.

"I hope not, love."

It was the best he could offer, and it was woefully inadequate, as was evidenced by Jack's reaction. For the rest of that day and into the next, Jack refused to stay anywhere in the apartment on his own. He followed Jackie and Ianto everywhere, refusing to be left alone. Early in the afternoon, Jackie headed out to pick up fresh groceries, somewhat reluctantly leaving Jack and Ianto alone in the apartment together. She returned an hour and a half later and was both upset and frustrated to find Jack sitting slumped on the floor outside the toilet, crying miserably.

It didn't take much effort to realise what was wrong.

"Ianto?" she called out tentatively. "Are you in there?"

"Yes," his voice came back in reply, muffled by the door. "I'm sorry, but I just couldn't hold on any longer. I'll be back out soon."

Sighing, Jackie turned her attention to Jack and spoke with just a hint of impatience.

"Oh, come on, then. Up you get, you silly thing."

"Yan wouldn't let me go in with him," Jack blurted out in between hiccupping sobs. Jackie, though, was unsympathetic, and favoured him with a stern look.

"Well, of course he wouldn't! Don't be daft. He doesn't follow you into the loo, now, does he?"

Jack sniffed loudly as he got clumsily to his feet.

"No..."

"No, he doesn't. Now, what are you really upset about?"

Jack wrung his hands together nervously, and he pointed jerkily towards the living room.

You're worried about that thing reappearing," Jackie guessed, and Jack nodded quickly. "All right, fair enough, but that's still no excuse for trying to follow Ianto into the loo. Just a few minutes on your own isn't going to hurt, and I know you're braver than that, so just settle down now."

She took him through into the kitchen and sat him down with a tall glass of milk, and a plate of freshly baked biscuits, and before long the upset was almost completely forgotten. Ianto emerged a few minutes later, and the only hint of his embarrassment was the red tinge to his cheeks. Jack looked up at him, a thoroughly sheepish look on his face.

"Sorry, Yan toe."

Ianto sighed and leaned down to give Jack a brief cuddle, pressing a tender kiss to the top of his head.

"It's all right, Jack. But you need to understand that we can't always be in sight twenty-four hours a day. You need to be able to cope when we go into another room, and not panic and get yourself into a state like that. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Jack answered. "I'm silly. Are you mad?"

Ianto raised an eyebrow in bemusement, but quickly shook it off.

"No, I'm not mad. I just need you to be a little bit more sensible. Nothing's going to happen to you here, Jack, as long as we do the right thing and stay inside. You don't have to be frightened every time you're left on your own. Okay?"

Jack nodded slowly. There was a slight frown on his face, as though he didn't fully comprehend what Ianto had said, but was trying hard regardless.

"Okay."

"So no more getting yourself all upset next time I need to use the bathroom?" Ianto asked, and had to struggle not to laugh at the hangdog expression Jack adopted.

"I promise."

Ianto smiled and ruffled Jack's hair affectionately.

"That's all I'm asking."

"Ianto," Jackie said finally, and for the first time Ianto noticed the worry that was etched into her features.

"What's wrong?"

"I need to talk to you," she said in a low voice. "Alone..."

Feeling a sharp prick of unease, Ianto spoke to Jack once more.

"We're going to give you a chance to show us that you can act grown up. Jackie and I are going to just go into the living room. You won't be able to see us, but we'll be right there. Okay?"

Jack looked uncertain, but made no attempt to get up.

"I'll... stay here?"

"That's right. You stay here and enjoy your biscuits and milk."

He followed Jackie into the living room, just out of sight of Jack, whom they could both hear humming loudly to himself in the other room.

"I know you told him you can't go with him when the Doctor comes back, sweetheart" Jackie said worriedly, "but maybe you ought to be rethinking that. I'm not so sure he'll cope too well without you."

Ianto sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

"I've thought about it, Jackie. You have no idea how much I've thought about it, but I have family. I can't just run off and abandon them."

"You wouldn't be abandoning them," Jackie snorted. "Look at my Rose. She's off with him, hardly a thought to me, comes home when she feels like it. Tell me, when did you last see your family? Well?"

He couldn't answer, much to his own embarrassment. Jackie took hold of his hand, and squeezed it reassuringly.

"It's all right, love. I didn't mean to upset you. All I'm trying to say is that you could go with Jack when the Doctor takes him away, without giving up your family. Just like he says, it travels through time and space. Your family'd hardly know you were gone... 'Course, that's assuming the silly alien git doesn't do to you what he did to my Rose, and keep you away for a whole flippin' year! Gave him a right slap for that one, I did."

Ianto couldn't help but smile. He strongly suspected that she did, at that.

"I'll have to think about it, Jackie. Right now, I'm just concerned about what's best for Jack."

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"If you think letting him go off without you is the best thing for him, then you need to do some more thinking. He needs you, Ianto. No doubt about that."

"I know he does," Ianto agreed. "It's the main reason that I don't think I should go with him."

Jackie sighed and shook her head.

"I think you're wrong, but I suppose it's up to you in the end. Just... don't make a decision like that without thinking it through properly. Promise me that much?"

"I promise," Ianto murmured, and smiled tiredly as she pulled him in for a brief, bone-crushing hug.

"You're too ruddy thin, you are!" she exclaimed, not for the first time. "You and Jack both! Now come into the kitchen, and let me make you something to eat."

"Trying to fatten us both up, Jackie?" Ianto asked wryly, and she grinned at him.

"Well, you could stand to gain a few pounds. And so could that poor love in there."

"You keep baking biscuits, and I guarantee Jack will start to fill out more," Ianto said, and tried in vain to duck out of the way when Jackie whacked him on the arm.

"Oi, you being rude to your host?"

"Wouldn't dream of it," he answered with a grin. He was about to follow her back into the kitchen when the sound of Jack shrieking, followed by the distinct sound of a glass breaking reached them. They hurried back into the kitchen, only to freeze at the sight that met them.

Jack still sat at the table, but he seemed frozen in place and his eyes were almost comically wide with fear. The glass that he'd been drinking from was unnoticed on the floor at his feet, shattered into irreparable pieces. Across the way from him, near the door, was an exact replica of the shadowy entity that had invaded the apartment the day before.

Reacting instinctively, Ianto crossed the floor and wrapped his arms around Jack protectively, while Jackie took a couple of tentative steps towards the apparition.

"Hello? Can you hear me?" she asked in a steady voice that belied her own fear.

"Jackie!" Ianto hissed. "Come back here! Don't go near it!"

She ignored him, staring at the apparition with growing curiosity.

"Hello?"

It never moved or spoke, it simply stood there for nearly a minute before finally fading away into nothing once more.

"It's gone now," Ianto murmured, cuddling Jack reassuringly as the older man trembled violently. "It's all right, nothing to be afraid of."

"You know," Jackie said, still staring at the place where the apparition had appeared, "there was something familiar about him. He kind of reminds me of my dad."

Ianto looked up at her, confused and incredulous.

"Your father? Jackie, it was a faceless apparition! How could it possibly remind you of your father?"

"Couldn't you smell it?" she asked.

"Smell what?"

"The cigarettes! I'm sure I caught a whiff of cigarettes. My dad used to smoke all the time."

Ianto drew in a shaky breath.

"I didn't smell anything, Jackie. There wasn't anything _to_ smell."

"Well, says you, but you were over there with Jack, weren't you? 'Course you weren't going to smell it."

Deciding against arguing with her, Ianto returned his attention to Jack.

"Are you all right, cariad?"

"Same time," Jack whimpered. For a moment, Ianto was confused, but then he glanced up at the clock on the wall, and realised that Jack was right.

"It happened at the same time yesterday, too. Ten past the hour... What on earth is going on?"

* * *

By that evening, news of the mysterious apparitions was all over the media. The strange entities had appeared not only in Jackie Tyler's apartment, but apparently all over London. There was a moderate state of panic across the city, but at the same time no one appeared to have been injured by the apparitions. By all accounts, the silhouettes appeared at ten past the hour, at noon, hovered in view for a minute or two, and then vanished again. It was unsettling at the very least, but apparently harmless.

Over the next couple of weeks, the apparitions appeared regularly at ten past noon, without fail. The one that appeared within Jackie's apartment became visible in the kitchen, and as a result Jack refused to venture anywhere near the kitchen around the time the apparition was due to appear.

By the time a month had gone by, the general panic of the populace had faded, and the appearance had been officially dubbed the Ghost Shift. Jackie was convinced by then that the apparition was, indeed, her father, and Ianto had long since given up trying to convince her otherwise.

He held growing suspicions that whatever was causing the disturbances quite probably originated from Torchwood, but he didn't have any proof and he had no intention of trying to seek said proof out. All he knew was that he shared Jack's opinion – that the apparitions were something to be feared, not welcomed. He simply couldn't share in Jackie's excitement, no matter what she said or what was reported through the media.

* * *

They had been hiding within Jackie's apartment for over a month when Jackie came home one evening with groceries, looking deeply worried. Sensing the tension radiating from here, Ianto left Jack in the living room happily reading a book and munching on a particularly large piece of chocolate cake, and joined Jackie in the kitchen.

"What's wrong?" he asked softly, taking care to keep his voice low. Over the last month, Jack had slowly been showing more signs of awareness of his surroundings, and Ianto had found it increasingly necessary to avoid talking about certain subjects where Jack could overhear him – subjects that specifically included the Ghost Shifts and Torchwood.

"They're looking for you," she said abruptly, causing an unwelcome shudder to pass through Ianto. He didn't need to ask who she meant.

"What happened?"

"I was just coming out of Tesco's, and I saw these two coppers handing out leaflets. Poor sods looked bored stupid. Anyway, they handed me one, and I swear I damn near had a stroke. Here, look."

Ianto took a slightly crumpled sheet of paper from her, and paled a little when he saw what was on it. There, in front of him, was a missing persons leaflet offering a substantial reward for any information. The reward information was accompanied by large, clear pictures of both him and Jack.

"They know we haven't left London," Ianto said heavily. "Damn it, I should have known better than to hope they'd given up."

"All right, don't start panicking on me," Jackie told him firmly. "As long as you both stay indoors, you'll be fine. There's only one person who even knows you're here."

"We're putting you in danger, though..."

"Stop right there, young man," Jackie said, cutting him off forcefully. "You're only here in the first place because I agreed to it. Now, even if I let you both leave – which I'm not, by the way – where do you think you could go?"

Ianto's shoulders slumped. He knew the answer to that without either of them needing to vocalise it. Jackie reached out and grasped his shoulders gently.

"Now you listen to me, Mr Jones. I can take care of myself. It's you and Jack that we need to worry about, not me. It's not me that they want."

Ianto couldn't dispute that. As with Sarah Jane, Jackie Tyler was not doing anything that she didn't want to do, and he had no right to disrespect her by arguing with her.

"We're just going to have to work harder to keep Jack occupied," Jackie went on. "We both know he's starting to get cabin fever."

Ianto nodded in wordless agreement. Multiple times, Ianto had had to chide Jack for peeking out through the curtains, and a couple of weeks back he'd nearly had a heart attack upon finding Jack out on the landing outside the apartment.

He understood Jack was restless and feeling increasingly confined, and he had to keep reminding Jack of the need to stay hidden. Jack complied, albeit sporting a pout that would put any three year-old to shame. Ianto grimaced. He was appalled to find that it was becoming more and more difficult to ignore that pout, and what was worse was that Jack seemed to be well aware that he was wearing his ad hoc guardian down.

Ianto headed back into the living room. As much as he'd been trying to keep Jack shielded from any news to do with 'the bad place', he felt it necessary to warn Jack afresh of the need to stay hidden. He just hoped that it wouldn't be long before the Doctor made an appearance, because he just wasn't sure how much longer he could carry on like this.

He faltered in the archway that led through the living room. Jack's book was abandoned on the couch, and the empty plate on the floor.

"Jack?" he called out, expecting that his charge had either gone to use the bathroom or perhaps retreated to his bedroom. "Jack, where are you?"

There was no answer. Ianto was about to go and look in the bedroom, when he felt a rush of fresh air. Walking around, he discovered the front door to the apartment was open.

"Jackie, did you leave the front door open?" he asked, trying to ignore the way his gut was suddenly twisting up.

She came around the corner with an indignant frown on her face.

"'Course I didn't. Don't be stupid."

Ianto felt light-headed with sudden fear, and he blurted out the frightening realisation that struck them both at the same moment.

"He's gone... Jackie, he's gone!"

* * *

_to be continued..._


	18. Dangerous Distractions

In the end, not even the threat of a Jackie Tyler slap was enough to keep Ianto from going out in search of Jack. With only a black hoodie for cover, Ianto quickly crossed the estate in broad daylight, praying fervently that no unfriendly eyes were watching.

He had no doubt that Jack had merely wandered out of the apartment of his own volition, and that nothing more sinister had occurred. Had Torchwood been responsible, he knew that he would have been taken as well, if not killed outright.

Ianto turned the corner and found himself at the edge of a small park and playground area, where perhaps half a dozen children were playing and running around. He scanned the area quickly and was about to continue on his way when a sight on the other side of the playground caught his attention. There, much to his intense relief, was Jack. He was sitting on the ground with another child who looked to be around eight or nine years old, and the two of them appeared to be lavishing attention on a large dog.

Torn between feeling frustration or amusement, Ianto hurried around to where his wayward charge was sitting.

* * *

Jack hadn't meant to be naughty and leave the apartment. He really hadn't. All he'd done was get up to go to the bathroom when he'd heard a new sound.

He really, honestly hadn't meant to go outside, but he wanted to know what was making that noise because it sounded really interesting and he had only planned on opening the door a crack to peek out and then shut it again but there was a boy walking past like Luke but not Luke and he had a dog like his dog only not a toy but a big live honest to goodness dog…

Before he really knew what was happening, he'd gone outside the apartment to look at the big dog, and the boy had told him he could pet the dog if he wanted to. The next thing he knew, he was following them to a playground not too far away, and sitting on the ground petting and cuddling and holding the big dog that was called Charlie.

So, it really wasn't his fault. He hadn't meant to disobey his Yan toe. It had just… happened. As much as part of him knew he was going to be in trouble, though, he couldn't help but take pleasure in the warm sun and the bright day and the cool breeze and the big dog called Charlie who was licking his face and letting him cuddle him as much as he wanted.

Jack was so caught up in cuddling and petting Charlie that he didn't see the man coming towards him. He didn't realised someone else was there until a shadow fell across him, blocking out the warmth of the sun.

* * *

Ianto stood with his hands on his hips, frowning as he waited for Jack to register his presence. Slowly, Jack's head came up as he pulled his attention away from the enormous Golden Retriever that was currently sprawled contentedly in his lap, and finally their eyes locked.

Jack paled a little, his hands stilling on Charlie's back, and the dog whined a little at the sudden lack of movement. He swallowed, and his lower lip trembled.

"I'm in trouble, aren't I?"

"Oh yes," Ianto confirmed sternly. "You are in big trouble, but we'll deal with that when we get home. Right now, you can say goodbye to your new friends. It's time to go."

Jack's face fell completely. He hugged Charlie once more, and then looked mournfully to Charlie's owner.

"I have to go now."

The boy looked from Jack to Ianto quizzically.

"He wasn't doing anything bad, Mister. He just wanted to pat Charlie. I said he could come with us. It's not his fault."

Ianto couldn't help but smile.

"Thankyou for telling me that, but I'm afraid there's a little more to it."  
Jack leaned in towards the boy at that point and whispered conspiratorially.

"We're hiding from the bad people."

Ianto shut his eyes and offered up a quick prayer for strength. He only hoped firstly that the boy hadn't seen any of the flyers that Jackie had shown him earlier; secondly that he hadn't seen which apartment Jack had come out of; and thirdly, that he assumed Jack was simple.

The boy, for his part, was staring at them both now with wide eyes.

"You mean like that witness protection thing?"

Ianto saw an opportunity, and pounced on it.

"Yes, that's right… Sorry, what was your name?"

"Ben, Mister."

"Well, Ben, the truth is that Jack here is in hiding from some very bad people who want to hurt him. I'm trying to keep him safe."

"Are you a policeman?"

"Yes, that's right," Ianto agreed, ignoring the wide-eyed look that Jack was now giving him. "That's what I am, Ben. If anyone asks you about me or Jack, we need you to say that you haven't seen us. Would you do that?"

The boy's eyes were alight with excitement at the secret that he'd been made privy to, but he nodded and answered with all the solemnity of an adult.

"Yes, Mister. If anyone asks, I don't know who you are, and I never saw you. Okay?"

"Okay," Ianto agreed in relief. He then looked to Jack, who was still looking mournful and had his arms wrapped around Charlie. "We have to go home now, Jack."

With visible reluctance, Jack released his hold on Charlie the dog and got awkwardly to his feet.

"You're a police?" Jack asked, wide-eyed, as Ianto took his hand and began to lead him back. Ianto huffed a little in frustration, and waited until they were well away from Ben before speaking in a low, tense voice.

"No, Jack, I'm not a policeman, and you bloody well know it. I had to lie to that boy because you couldn't do what you were supposed to do, and stay inside!"

"Are you mad?" Jack asked in a suddenly small voice.

"Yes," Ianto admitted. "Yes, Jack, I am mad. You know better than to do this!"

"I'm sorry…"

"No, sorry isn't quite enough this time. You know why we're in hiding, but you still went outside where you could have been seen by anyone! I don't want to be mad at you, Jack, but it really isn't good enough. It isn't just you at risk here, you know. You're putting me and Jackie in danger as well."

A loud sob broke the ensuing quiet, and Ianto didn't need to look to know that Jack was crying. This time, though, Ianto made no attempt to comfort him.

* * *

They met up with Jack halfway back to the apartment. She looked to Jack in concern, but said nothing when Ianto shook his head. As much as he hated it, Jack needed to understand the potential ramifications of his actions. He needed to have it hammered home so that he thought twice the next time he had an urge to wander.

Back at the apartment, Ianto took Jack straight through to their shared room, and sat him down on his bed.

"You're going to stay in here until supper time, Jack. No TV, no books, nothing. I want you to just sit here and think about this. When I come back in here, I want you to be able to look me in the eye, and tell me that what happened today is not going to happen again."

With that, he left Jack alone, trying hard not to let his own heart break at the sound of the heart-wrenching sobs that came from within the bedroom.

"Wasn't that a little bit harsh?" Jackie asked softly as Ianto joined her in the kitchen.

"He's not a child, Jackie," Ianto reminded her. "He needs to understand that he can't just wander off."

"Where'd he go, anyway?"

"To a playground, thankfully not too far away. He was distracted by a bloody dog!"

Jackie couldn't quite hide a snort of amusement, drawing a mutinous look from Ianto.

"It isn't funny! He could have been recaptured! He could have gotten you killed!"

The amusement fled Jackie's face almost instantaneously.

"You didn't put that guilt trip on him, did you? Oh, Ianto…"

"I'll talk to him later," Ianto conceded with a sigh. "But right now I just need him to see that there are consequences. We seem to have been fortunate this time. We might not be the next time."

"He might not be a child, sweetheart," Jackie said in an attempt to placate the irate Welshman, "but he's still thinking like one. You need to give him a bit of a break. After all, how long did you say he'd been locked up for?"

"A hundred and six years," Ianto said glumly. "I know… It's just, the longer we're here, the greater the risk of being caught, but there's nowhere else we can go. I'm scared, Jackie, for all of us."

"I understand," Jackie insisted. "Really, I do. But you aren't goin' to achieve anything by taking it out on Jack. He's scared too, you know."

"I'll talk to him," Ianto promised. "But not yet. He needs to…"

He trailed off as Jackie looked pointedly past him. Turning, he discovered Jack hovering nervously in the archway, clutching his blanket to his chest and struggling not to cry.

"I told you to stay in your room, Jack," Ianto said sternly. Jack whimpered, and Jackie gave Ianto a pointed glare. Sighing, the younger man conceded.

"All right, then. What is it, cariad?"

He deliberately used the term of endearment to soften the anger that he knew was seeping through in his voice. As angry as he was, he didn't want Jack to doubt that he was loved and cared for.

"My dog," Jack whimpered, tears filling his eyes afresh. For a split second, Ianto thought he meant Charlie the dog, only to realise quickly that it was his toy dog that Jack was referring to. He was confused for all of about ten seconds before dismayed realisation struck.

"Oh, no… Please, tell me you didn't…"

Jack hung his head and wrung his blanket miserably, confirming Ianto's fear that Jack had left the toy behind at the playground. He groaned softly, but somehow managed to keep a check on his temper.

"All right, Jack. All right. I'll go back and look for your dog."

"Ianto, maybe I ought to go," Jackie interjected worriedly. "I mean, it might not be safe."

"It's all right," Ianto murmured in assurance, even though a deeper instinct whispered otherwise. "Even Torchwood aren't that quick off the mark… I hope. And besides, I think I know where he left it. I just hope no one else has taken it."

Jackie, however, was having none of it.

"Don't be so bloody stupid, Ianto. You just lectured Jack about how dangerous it is to go outside, but you're willing to take that risk going out to look for a ruddy toy dog?"

"It was a gift to Jack from one of the other Secure Archive workers," Ianto explained. "It was after he'd had a particularly bad experience, and now the damned thing is nearly as important to him as his blanket."

"All right, fair enough, but you can stay right here. I'll go and look for it."

"Jackie," Ianto protested, "what if we were spotted? If you go back there now, they might make the connection and work out where we are!"

"Ianto, you're a smart lad, but right now you're being an idiot. If you'd been spotted before, then I reckon they'd already be knocking on the door."

Instinctively, Ianto knew she was right. Subsequently, he nearly jumped clean out of his skin when the doorbell rang.

"Both of you, stay right here," Jackie told them, fear sparking in her own eyes. "And for God's sake, keep quiet!"

Ianto nodded, and Jack clamped a hand over his own mouth in an almost comical attempt to quieten his hiccoughing sobs.

Bracing herself for a confrontation, Jackie went to the front door and, before she could lose her nerve, flung it open to deal with whoever was on the other side.

"Oh, hello there!" she exclaimed, both startled and relieved to find a young boy standing there. She thought she recognised him from the Estate, but she didn't know him personally. He couldn't have been any older than nine or ten, and yet he seemed to have no problem controlling the big dog at his side.

The boy glanced around, as though looking for anyone who might have been near enough to be listening in, before leaning forward and whispering to Jackie.

"Is Jack here?"

She stared at him, at a loss for what to say or do. The boy went on in that same secretive whisper.

"It's just, he left this behind at the playground, and I wanted to give it back. You know, before Charlie got it and slobbered all over it."

Jackie looked down in time to see the boy produce a slightly dirty stuffed toy dog from within his coat. Suddenly galvanised, Jackie ushered both boy and dog into the apartment.

"Come in, quick, out of sight." She closed the door firmly behind them before turning back to Ben. "Now, how you know Jack is here?"

"Well, I saw him come out of here earlier," Ben explained. "Don't worry, though. They didn't follow me. They don't know he's here."

Again, she found herself gaping.

"What are you on about? Ianto! Jack! Get out here, both of you!"

Slowly, Ianto emerged with Jack shuffling nervously behind him. They both stopped in surprise at the sight of the boy in the living room.

"Ben?" Ianto inquired cautiously. Jack, however, only had eyes for the large canine.

"Charlie!"

The big dog barked and surged forward, pulling away from Ben and trotting eagerly over to Jack for a fresh round of hugs and pats.

"I brought this back for Jack," Ben explained. "He left it behind when you came and got him."

Jack uttered a wordless squeal of joy as Ben handed him the toy dog, and he cuddled it to him with one arm, whilst the other arm held firmly onto Charlie.

"Jack," Ianto said quietly, "don't you have something to say to Ben?"

Jack looked up at the boy, eyes red and swollen from crying but still smiling.

"Thankyou for bringing my dog back."

Ben grinned.

"S'okay. Charlie wanted to see you again, too."

Jack grinned through his mop of hair and drying eyes, and hugged Charlie again. The dog responded by bathing Jack's face with his tongue. Struggling not to grimace at the sight, Ianto returned his attention to Ben.

"Thankyou, Ben."

"S'okay," Ben said again. "And don't worry, they didn't see me come here."

A slight chill raced down Ianto's spine. He really, really didn't like the way that came out.

"Who didn't see you, Ben?"

"The people that turned up after you left. There was maybe five or six of 'em, and they were goin' around asking all the kids about you and Jack. I think some of the kids said they saw you, but none of 'em knew where you went. I said I was busy with my dog, and didn't see nothing."

Jackie reached out to touch Ianto's shoulder with a trembling hand. They were both equally shaken to learn that operatives were so close on their heels.

"The CCTV!" Ianto burst out suddenly. "The playground's CCTV! Oh god, they know where we are…"

"No, they don't," Jackie insisted, although she felt considerably less sure than she managed to sound. "If they knew, they wouldn't have been asking a bunch of kids about you."

"Maybe," Ianto said hoarsely, "but they'll know we're in the area. How long before they swarm this place?"

He was oblivious to everything around him, aware only of the panic that was rapidly taking hold of him. His breath was just starting to catch in his throat when the stinging pain of an open-palmed slap jolted him back to awareness. He gaped at Jackie in shock, too stunned to be concerned about Jack reacting badly to her tactics.

"You listen to me now, Ianto Jones," Jackie said fiercely. "We aren't going to panic. We aren't going to go to pieces. We are going to lay low and wait for this to blow over, because it will blow over. They aren't going to find you or Jack, I promise you that. And you, Mr Jones, are going to stay calm and not panic. Is that clear?"

"Crystal," Ianto said as he rubbed gingerly at his cheek. Jackie nodded.

"Good. Now, Ben, how about we get you some milk and cake, and then you can go on home."

Ben nodded enthusiastically.

"Thanks! And if you like, I could bring Charlie around again to see Jack. That is, if he isn't allowed to go outside?"

Ianto looked to Jackie to respond to that. After all, it was her apartment, and her decision. She considered it for a moment before relenting.

"That'd be lovely, Ben. And maybe it'll stop Jack from wanting to wander."

Ianto looked across to Jack, who smiled sheepishly. He spoke quietly, grateful for Jackie's command of the situation.

"I think that would be a brilliant idea."

* * *

After Ben and Charlie had left, nearly half an hour later, and relative peace had settled once more, Ianto left Jackie preparing dinner and joined Jack in the living room. The older man watched his protector warily, much to Ianto's quiet sadness.

"Do I have to go back to my room?" Jack asked softly, and Ianto could see that Jack was preparing himself to go and sit out the punishment. Sighing, he slung an arm around Jack's shoulders and pulled him in close for a hug.

"No, you don't have to. I think you've learnt your lesson today, haven't you?"

"Yes," Jack mumbled, slowly stroking his fingers over the toy dog. Ianto watched him curiously for a minute before speaking again.

"What's bothering you, Jack?"

"We can't escape, can we?"

The question came literally out of left field, and Ianto stared at Jack in wonder and heartbreak. When Jack looked up at him, his expression bore the same innocent sadness as always, but for just a split second Ianto thought he could see the mature man behind the childlike façade.

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "I honestly don't know, cariad. All I can promise is that we're going to try our best. I know this is hard for you, Jack, but try to hold on for just a little longer. Please…"

"Okay," Jack agreed with innocent sincerity.

Silence reigned between them for a while before Jack shifted on the couch to turn and look at Ianto.

"Yan?"

It took some effort for Ianto not to react to the abhorred nickname. It was time, he decided, to teach Jack to say his name properly.

"It's 'Ianto', Jack. Not Yan."

Jack frowned.

"Yan toe."

"Yes, but all in the one word. You're saying it like it's two separate words. It's not. 'Ianto'. Try it, go on."

"Yantoe."

"Nearly. Try again. Say 'Ianto'."

Jack drew in a long breath before speaking carefully with exaggerated articulation.

"_Ianto_."

Ianto didn't try to hide the grin that lit up his face, and in turn Jack's face lit up with delight at the realisation that he'd done something to make Ianto happy. Enthused, he grabbed Ianto to him in a bone-crushing hug that the younger man had no intention of trying to squirm out of.

"Well done," Ianto praised him, laughing softly as he hugged Jack tightly.

"I love you, Yan," Jack exclaimed, promptly falling back into the habit of shortening Ianto's name. Ianto rolled his eyes and decided it just wasn't worth the argument.

"I love you too, Jack."

Jack sighed happily before sitting back contentedly. Ianto got to his feet, intending to go back to helping Jackie with that evening's meal, when Jack spoke up again, sounding both tentative and hopeful.

"Yan?"

Ianto swallowed a desire to chip Jack on the use of that nickname. There had been enough upsets that day, and he had no wish to cause another.

"What is it, Jack?"

"Can I have a dog?"

* * *

_to be continued..._


	19. Things Fall Apart

Ianto spent the next forty-eight hours in a constant state of near-panic. He slept very little, his insomnia fuelled by a sickening expectation that at any moment they could find themselves back in Torchwood's claws. In all honesty, he couldn't decide whether he was better or worse off that, after two days, there was no sign of Torchwood operatives anywhere near the apartment.

"You know, you're scaring him," Jackie chided when she emerged from her bedroom to find Ianto standing guard near the curtained window, watching the goings-on outside with eagle eyes. He didn't so much as glance back at her.

"I'm just keeping a look out, Jackie."

She huffed in annoyance.

"That's only half of it, though. You've only let him out of his room at night time, and to use the bathroom. He thinks you're still mad at him for wandering out the other day."

A frustrated sigh escaped Ianto's lips.

"I'm not mad at him, but he's got to stay out of sight."

Jackie stared at him for several seconds before speaking carefully.

"Ianto, sweetheart, you need to tell him it's okay, that there's nothing to be afraid of."

"Well, I can't tell him that, can I?" Ianto snapped, giving Jackie a vivid taste of his own fear and frustration. "I can't lie to him and tell him everything's fine, because it's not!"

"Well, for God's sake, at least let him come out of that ruddy room!"

"It's the safest place for him," Ianto said stiffly. Jackie's frown deepened.

"Yeah, and I bet that's the same logic Torchwood had when they locked him up in the first place!"

Ianto flinched as though she'd slapped him again. Jackie's expression softened, but only a little.

"Sweetheart, please, just listen to me. I just looked in on him, and he was huddled up in the corner, lookin' absolutely terrified. You need to bring him out, and at least let him see a little sunlight, so he doesn't start thinking he's a prisoner all over again."

Pale-faced and horrified at the not unreasonable suggestion that he was in danger of treating Jack as inhumanely as Torchwood, Ianto hurried past her to Jack's room.

* * *

Sure enough, Jack was curled up in the farthest corner of the tiny room, knees drawn up to his chest and watching the doorway with wide, terrified eyes. Sick to his stomach, Ianto walked cautiously over to Jack and crouched down in front of him.

"Jack? Look at me, cariad."

Pale blue eyes that were wide with terror and red from crying stared back him.

"Are they here?"

"Who?"

"The bad people. Have they come for me?"

"No, Jack, they haven't come," Ianto murmured. He seated himself on the floor beside Jack and slipped his arms around the older man's body in a protective hug. "They don't know that you're here. It's okay."

"But…"

"But nothing," Ianto cut him off quietly. "I know I've kept you cooped up in here the last couple of days, but I was wrong. They haven't come for you, love. You're still safe."

Hope lit up Jack's eyes.

"Really?"

Ianto smiled and ruffled Jack's hair, delighting in the giggle from the other man.

"Really. Now, come on. Up you get. Come out and I'll get you a nice big bowl of ice cream."

"Chocolate ice cream?" Jack asked hopefully as Ianto help him up.

"Yes, if you like," Ianto conceded. He paused, eyeing Jack with a critical gaze. "Go and wash your face and hands, and I'll have the ice cream ready for you when you come out. All right?"

Jack grinned widely and all but bounced out of the room. Ianto chuckled wryly as he followed him out. Jackie was right – whether he believed it was true or not, it was still important to let Jack believe he was safe, at least to a degree. If nothing else, happy Jack was far preferable to miserable and frightened Jack.

Smiling sadly to himself, Ianto headed for the kitchen to get Jack an extra large bowl of chocolate ice cream, with whipped cream and sprinkles into the bargain.

* * *

Jack's delight lit up the room when Ianto set the bowl in front of him, and he wasted no time digging in. Ianto and Jackie watched with indulgent smiles, taking pleasure in his simple joy.

"At least he's easy to please," Jackie said with a chuckle. Ianto grinned.

"I know. Ice cream, fruit, chocolate... He loves all of it. He does have a particular fondness for fruit, though. Especially apples."

"Me, I like bananas," Jackie said. "Bananas are good."

Ianto faltered in responding. Jack had suddenly looked up and there was a strange look on his face.

"Jack? What is it?"

"Bananas," Jack said slowly. "He liked bananas. Took my gun, gave me a banana instead."

"What's he on about?" Jackie asked with a frown. Ianto couldn't answer, though. He honestly had no idea. Jack looked up at them with pain in his eyes.

"Why can't I remember? I want to remember. Why can't I?"

"You will," Ianto reassured him. "But it'd be bad if you remembered everything at once."

"Sore head," Jack said mournfully, and Ianto nodded in agreement.

"Yes, very sore head. Be patient, and when the Doctor comes back, hopefully he'll be able to help."

"When?"

"Soon, cariad," Ianto murmured. "Very soon, I hope."

* * *

That night, Ianto awoke to the sound of crying, rather than screaming. He sat up dazedly, and found Jack sitting at the end of his mattress, struggling to hold back sobs that just would not be contained.

He crawled to Jack's side to hold him in what he assumed was the wake of yet another nightmare.

"What is it, Jack? Talk to me?"

"Don't want him to come," Jack whimpered. For a moment, Ianto was at a loss.

"Who? You don't want who to come?"

"Him! With the blue box!"

Ianto felt his stomach drop, wondering whether Jack had suddenly remembered something more – something worse – about the mysterious Doctor.

"Why not, Jack? He'll be able to take you away from all of this! Away from Torchwood, away from this whole time and place... Away from..."

"You," Jack cut in brokenly. Ianto's heart sank.

"Jack, we've been through this already..."

"Don't wanna leave you," Jack protested. "You treat me nice, and you only yell at me when I'm bad."

"What, and you don't think the Doctor will be nice to you?"

"He left me," Jack said abruptly. Slowly, the last remnants of sleep faded from Ianto's mind, and he realised what Jack meant; what he didn't seem to have the ability to vocalise.

"You're scared that he'll leave you behind again, aren't you?"

"He left me," Jack said again miserably. Ianto reached across slowly and took Jack's hand, squeezing it to reassure him.

"What do you remember?"

Jack's breath hitched in chest, and he spoke in a small voice.

"Dust. Lots of dust, in piles on the floor. And a smell... like dead bodies. There was a sound. I ran... I remember the blue box. It disappeared in front of me. I... I cried, but it didn't come back."

Tears spilled down Jack's cheeks, and Ianto gently brushed them aside with his thumb.

"It won't happen again, I promise you. I won't let it."

"But you're going to leave me, too," Jack pointed out plaintively. "Please, Yan, don't leave?"

"You don't need me, Jack," Ianto told him. Jack opened his mouth to protest, but Ianto gently covered his mouth to silence him before he could get a sound out. "Listen to me, love. I know you think you need me, but you don't. You're stronger than you think, and sooner or later you're going realise what I'm telling you is true. You don't need me."

"But... I want you," Jack said miserably.

Ianto barely suppressed a grimace. His one saving grace was that Jack really had no concept of any deeper meaning to his words.

"It's not fair," Jack said finally, his shoulders slumped and head hanging so that his face was shielded by his long, shaggy hair. He really did need a haircut rather badly, Ianto mused distractedly. He shook himself back to reality at the sound of soft sobs, and hugged Jack to him.

"I know. But if life was fair, then you wouldn't have been Torchwood's prisoner for over a hundred years, either."

"Love you," Jack whispered. Ianto sighed softly and rubbed Jack's back soothingly. He was reluctant to verbally express affection for fear of it being misunderstood, but he'd long since learnt that not responding only seemed to make the upset that much worse. Better to respond simply, and hope that Jack's damaged mind continued to see their relationship simplistically.

He pressed a soft kiss to Jack's temple, and spoke softly to his depressed charge.

"I love you, too, cariad."

* * *

A week later, Ianto finally began to relax a little and believe that the security of their location hadn't been breached. Torchwood may have suspected they were somewhere in the general vicinity, but clearly had no idea where. As long as they both stayed within the apartment, it appeared they were safe. The only thing that continued to keep Ianto on edge were the ghost shifts. He'd watched the apparition's appearance out of reluctant necessity and he had a disturbing suspicion that the apparition was steadily growing more solid each time.

For his part, Jack had taken to hiding in his room and not coming out again until Ianto could confidently tell him it was gone, and Ianto didn't blame him for being frightened despite Jackie's continued insistence that it was just her father's ghost come to visit. Indeed, the apparent wide-spread acceptance of the apparitions bothered Ianto greatly. As far as he was concerned there was nothing natural about them, and it worried him deeply that people could so easily come to accept such a disturbing phenomenon.

Still, on the positive side there had been no further sign of Torchwood operatives in the area. Police were occasionally sighted by Jackie to be handing out the reward leaflets, but according to the formidable Mrs Tyler, Jack and Ianto probably could have walked right by them, and the poor, bored sods wouldn't have noticed. Not that Ianto intended on putting that theory to the test anytime soon…

Even so, Ianto knew he was finally beginning to relax a little when he woke up one morning to find he'd slept until almost noon. Startled by his own apparent lassitude, Ianto scrambled to get dressed, and hurried out.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, Ianto found Jack ensconced in the lounge room with his nose buried in a book. The television was on, but Jack was paying it no heed. Ianto went over with the intention of switching it off, but as his hand neared the power button, Jack finally looked up and uttered a yowl of protest.

Ianto frowned at him, startled and confused by his reaction, but he paused in turning the television set off.

"Would you kindly say that in English, Jack? I don't speak feline."

Jack reddened a little at the admonishment.

"Sorry. Um... Please leave the TV on?"

"Better," Ianto said approvingly. "Now, why do you need the TV on? You're not even watching it."

"Don't like the quiet," Jack admitted, sounding embarrassed. And suddenly, Ianto realised that beyond the noise of the TV, he couldn't hear Jackie anywhere within the apartment.

"Where is Jackie?" he asked, frowning again.

"Gone shopping," Jack replied. He paused, and then added brightly, "Up to seventy percent off. She was really excited. But before she went she made me promise to be good and not wake you up." His face fell suddenly as it occurred to him that he might have woken Ianto up, and he looked up anxiously. "I didn't wake you up, did I?"

Not for the first time, Ianto wondered whether Jack's incessant need for approval had anything to do with the Doctor.

"No, you didn't wake me up, not at all. You're being very good."

Jack grinned and, his confidence restored, went back to his book. Chuckling to himself, Ianto headed through into the kitchen. One thing he was certain of was that the Doctor was going to have his hands full once Jack was finally returned to his care.

* * *

For a while longer, Jack's attention remained on his book. Eventually, though, he found his gaze being drawn away from the words that told a charming story of a little boy who never wanted to grow up, and to the television instead. There was a movie on, and in it there were two people – a man and a woman – and they were arguing. Slowly, Jack let his book drop to the floor, his attention fully on the television. The man and woman were fighting, the woman was crying, and the man was begging her to stay and not leave him.

Jack's breath caught, and he glanced instinctively towards the kitchen, to where he knew Ianto was. His Ianto, who was going to leave him when the Doctor person came back…

He looked back to the television, and his eyes widened as the man on the screen stepped in, grabbed the woman and kissed her. The woman struggled a little, but then she seemed to be kissing the man back, and then the two of them were pulling their clothes off and falling down onto the couch and the man was grabbing at the woman and she was grabbing him back and they were kissing lots and lots…

Jack watched wide-eyed throughout the whole scene, sitting up so that he was seated on the very edge of the couch and he leant forward to watch intently. When it was over, the two people were fighting anymore, and the woman was telling the man that she would never leave him.

Jack swallowed hard as he finally tore his gaze away from the television, and looked towards the kitchen. Was that what he needed to do to make Ianto stay with him? Kiss him lots and take his clothes off and do those grabby things with him? Well, he liked kissing Ianto, and he thought Ianto liked it too, so maybe they'd like doing those other things as well.

Maybe… Excitement began to creep up within Jack as his damaged mind began to make simple connections. Maybe Ianto would like it so much that he'd change his mind and wouldn't leave, and they could always be together.

Excited by the possibility, and thoroughly proud of himself for having the idea, Jack picked himself up off the couch, and went to find Ianto, and try his idea out.

* * *

Ianto was just waiting for the kettle to boil – Lord, wasn't he looking forward to eventually being able to make a proper cup of tea or coffee – when he sensed Jack in the room with him. Pushing his cup away from the edge of the bench, he turned around.

"Jack… What are you doing?"

His surprised question came out only seconds before Jack closed the distance between them, grabbed the sides of Ianto's head in an almost bruising grip and kissed him dead square on the mouth. For a split second, Ianto was too stunned to react. This was most certainly not the standard hug and kiss greeting that he was used to. The kiss was sloppy and uncontrolled, and Ianto could feel Jack trying to push his tongue past a barrier of lips and teeth.

As uncomfortable and awkward as it was, though, he found himself disturbingly reluctant to break it off. His head felt light and slightly giddy, like he was mildly intoxicated. It wasn't an entirely bad sensation, and he didn't particularly want to put an end to it.

It wasn't until Ianto felt Jack groping clumsily at his arse that he finally managed to drag himself back to reality, and push Jack away from him.

"Stop it! Goddamn it, Jack, what do you think you're doing?"

Jack stared at him, his expression slightly panicked. He said nothing, and instead moved towards Ianto again, reaching for him with all-too-clear intent. Ianto was ready for him this time, though, and he grabbed Jack by the arms and propelled him backwards, not stopping until he had him pinned to the wall.

"Now," Ianto said tensely, "tell me what's going on, Jack. And you'd better have a good explanation, or I might just get really angry with you."

Jack flinched and tried to look away, but he couldn't escape Ianto's glare. Steadily, it began to sink in that he'd made a big mistake, and a sob hitched in his chest.

"I just want you to stay!"

"What? Jack, what are you talking about?"

"On the TV! The lady was going to leave him, and he kissed her and did other things to her and she didn't leave him. You were supposed to kiss me back and say that you wouldn't leave me!"

Ianto's jaw clenched, and his own frustrations finally boiled over.

"Fuck, Jack, are you really this naïve? That's just television! It's not real! I thought you understood that! Damn it, I told you why I can't stay with you when the Doctor comes back. Why won't you accept it?"

"But I love you…"

"Stop saying that!" Ianto exploded, falling back on his anger to try and shield himself from the guilt that was gnawing away at him.

"But I do," Jack whispered.

"Well, I don't love you!"

It was out of his mouth before he could stop himself, and in the very next instant he wished he could take the harsh words back. The damage was done, though.

Silence fell in the kitchen as the two men stared at each other – one distraught and one guilt-ridden. Ianto released his hold on Jack and stepped back, his mouth dry as it began to sink in just what he'd said, and how it was likely to be taken. The look on Jack's face was heart-breaking. He looked utterly shattered.

Snapping back to reality, Ianto started to reach out towards Jack, but the older man was having none of it. With an anguished howl, Jack turned and bolted from the kitchen. Ianto stayed there, shaken and distressed, trying to think clearly again through the shock of what had just happened.

The insane part was, Ianto thought he understood where Jack was coming from, and why – if not now – he had come to the conclusion that foreplay and sex would keep them together. Once he worked past the shock, he had to admit that he actually found it kind of touching, that Jack was so desperate not to be separated from him.

The truth was, he didn't want to leave Jack, but he could see no way around the situation. He hurt, too, at the thought of no longer being a part of Jack's life, but it was ultimately for the best. Why, for the love of all things holy, did Jack have to make it so much bloody harder than it already was?

The sound of the front door slamming broke him out of his brooding, and he looked up in shock.

"Jack?"

There was no answer. His heart in his throat, Ianto made a quick search of the apartment, praying that his ears had deceived him. Within a couple of minutes, though, his fears were confirmed. Jack had fled the apartment altogether.

Sick to his stomach with guilt and fear, Ianto went after him.

* * *

Jack didn't stop to think. He ran into the lounge room, grabbed his blanket and dog and ran straight out the front door, slamming it behind him. He didn't think, he just reacted. Thinking hurt too much, and he was tired of hurting. So, he ran down the stairs and across the Estate until he reached the playground where he'd first met Ben and Charlie.

The playground was deserted, the children all either at school or day care. Lonely, miserable and heartbroken, Jack stumbled to a halt and crumpled to the ground in the middle of the playground, hung his head and sobbed.

* * *

Ianto suspected he knew where Jack had gone. More to the point, he hoped and prayed it was where he'd gone. The bottom line was that if he hadn't headed for the playground, then Ianto had no idea where he was. It was a frightening prospect when he knew full well that Yvonne Hartman's goons were still searching for them. To have made it this far only to lose out over one unfortunate incident would just be too much to bear.

He rounded the corner and skidded to a halt, his gaze quickly finding the figure sitting desolately on the asphalt in the middle of the playground. Thanking whatever deity was paying attention, Ianto began to walk quickly towards Jack, going over in his mind what he could possibly say to heal the damage that he'd done.

As he neared Jack, he felt his hackles rise, and he paused to look around. There appeared to be no one in sight, but he knew from experience that Torchwood operatives were among the best in the country, if not the world, and they could easily avoid being seen if they wanted to. He sucked in a long breath that did little to calm him. He needed to get Jack out of sight, and fast.

Ianto started forward again, and this time he was within metres of where Jack was sitting when he saw it – a small beam of red light centred on the back of Jack's head. Panic leapt straight into Ianto's throat. It was the targeting beam of a gun. Someone, whether nearby or far away, had Jack squarely in their sights.

"Jack!" Ianto bellowed, and Jack swung around automatically at the sound of his voice. At the same moment, the ricochet of a rifle shot shattered the quiet.

Jack's scream rent the air as the bullet missed its target in the back of his head, only to tear his cheek wide open. Ianto charged forward and skidded to his knees beside Jack, taking just a brief moment to examine the wound before trying to urge Jack to his feet.

"C'mon, get up! We have to run! Now!"

Jack climbed awkwardly to his knees, his face alight with terror and pain.

"Yan…"

"Hurry up!" Ianto begged, pulling harder. "Jack, please…"

Jack made it to his feet, but before he could go two feet in any direction, though, another gunshot ripped through the air, striking Jack in the temple and felling him like a tree.

"No," Ianto whimpered as Jack collapsed to the ground, dead. Instinct screamed for him to run while he still had a chance, but he resisted the powerful urge. Instead, he struggled to lift the deadweight of Jack's body over his shoulders, intending to try and carry him to safety.

It was a pointless effort. He was still trying to manoeuvre Jack's body up off the ground when something struck him squarely between his shoulder blades. A moment later, electricity coursed through him, sending him tumbling to the ground in a useless heap. There he lay, unable to move and barely able to even breathe. He watched helplessly as figures emerged from impossible hiding places and advanced on the two of them in threatening silence.

Beyond desperate, Ianto tried to drag himself over Jack's body in a feeble last attempt to shield him, but he quickly discovered the only part of his body that he could still move were two fingers on his left hand.

A shadow fell across him, and he felt a hand on his back, pulling his shirt collar down to expose his neck.

"You stupid bastard, Jones," a voice that he didn't quite recognise muttered. "Never should've stayed in London."

He felt the sting of a needle piercing his neck, followed rapidly by a wave of dizziness and drug-induced fatigue. As he was dragged away from Jack, and darkness began to descend, his last thought was to curse the absent Doctor with every last ounce of energy that he had.

Then, darkness took hold and he knew no more.

* * *

Jackie arrived back at her apartment to find Ben and Charlie sitting literally on her doorstep. Charlie was whining miserably, and Ben had clearly been crying. Worse, in his hands, Ben held two items that she recognised as Jack's precious blanket and dog. Her heart racing, she approached them quickly to ask what was wrong.

"We were over near the park," Ben told her tearfully as he handed her the blanket and the toy dog. "I'm off school this week. Rest of my class are away on a day trip, and my mum couldn't afford so they just told her to keep me home. Anyway, I took Charlie for a walk, and we saw Jack."

"You what?" Jackie burst out. "He was outside?"

"Yeah, and he looked really upset. He was crying, Mrs Tyler! I was going to go over and see if he was okay, but then Mr Jones showed up."

Jackie felt ice in her veins. Despite some people's opinions, she was no fool, and she could easily guess why it was Ben sitting here telling her this story.

"Ben, where are they?"

"Someone shot Jack," Ben burst out, fresh tears flooding his eyes. "He's dead, they shot him and now he's dead! And they knocked Mr Jones out with some sort of stun gun. They took them both, Mrs Tyler. I don't know who they were, 'cause they were all in black, but they took Mr Jones and Jack away."

Shock settled over Jackie, leaving her feeling numb and more than a little bit sick.

"You'd best get yourself home, Ben," she told him softly.

Ben got up and started to walk dejectedly away, only to turn back and blurt out, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry I wasn't brave enough! I should've done something…"

Jackie covered the short distance to the boy in a second, and wrapped him up in a fierce embrace.

"Sweetheart, it was not your fault. If you'd tried to do anything, you might have been hurt badly. It was more important that you be able to come and tell me what happened."

Ben sniffled miserably.

"Are you going to tell the police?"

"Yeah, I'll do that," Jackie murmured, feeling only marginally guilty at the lie. "Don't you worry about it, sweetheart. Go on home, now, there's a good lad."

She watched him go, tears stinging her own eyes as the reality of what had happened began to sink in. Jack and Ianto had been retaken by Torchwood, and there would be no second escape. Their only hope now lay in an alien who never seemed to be able to be in the right place at the right time.

Jackie headed inside and over to the mantle in the lounge room, where she looked at a few more current pictures. Her gaze went to a small photo at the back; one of Rose together with the Doctor as he had looked when Rose first met him.

"I don't know where you are, you bloody alien git," she said heavily, "but you'd better get your skinny behind back here fast, before it's too late for those boys."

She went to bed that night with a sickening sensation of despair, and her sleep was plagued by nightmares. The next morning she was standing on the balcony outside her apartment when she finally heard the sound that they had been waiting nearly two months to hear – the distinctive grinding sound of an otherworldly engine.

* * *

_to be continued..._


	20. Reunions

Ianto woke up slowly, struggling to fight off the effects of the drug he'd been injected with. He was sick to his stomach and his head was spinning, making it extremely hard to focus on anything at all, let alone remember just what had happened. It slowly came filtering back, though, like a particularly unpleasant dream. The fight with Jack, chasing him to the playground, the ambush…

They had to have been watching the playground, he realised numbly. Watching, and waiting for Jack to reappear…

A choked sob escaped Ianto. It was entirely his fault. One thing said out of anger and frustration, and it had all come undone. All he'd had to do was tell Jack that he loved him, but no. He hadn't been able to do that. Instead, he'd let anger rule.

Ianto thumped the heel of his hand against his temple, relishing the dull ache that the movement provoked. Jack was now in a worse position than he had been before, and it was entirely his fault.

The sound of a door opening drew his attention, and he sat up slowly, looking at his surroundings for the first time.

He was in one of Torchwood One's infamous cells that were supposedly for use in containing aliens, although, to Ianto's knowledge, no aliens had actually been detained here — only humans unfortunate enough to have crossed paths with Yvonne Hartman and her ilk. He grimaced. Specifically, people like himself.

"Welcome back, Jones."

It was possibly the last voice that he wanted to hear, but as much as he wanted to ignore it, an inner voice warned him not to. He dared not ignore it. Reluctantly, he turned towards the person who had intruded on his captivity, and promptly suffered a resounding blow to the head that nearly knocked him clean off the bench and had him seeing stars.

He was still recovering from the not-so-unexpected punch when a hand grabbed him roughly by the chin and jerked his head around brutally.

"I told you I'd be here when you came crashing down," Spence snarled. "And here I am, you fucking little shit."

"Are you here to kill me?" Ianto asked numbly. The prospect of his impending death should have terrified him but, quite frankly, he doubted he could have cared less right then. He knew he was never going to see Jack again, so what did it matter? What did any of it matter?

"Oh, I would love to be the one to kill you," Spence hissed, jerking Ianto's head painfully. "Believe me, I would really love to be the one to put a bullet in your scheming head. I think, though, that the Director wants that privilege herself. You've cause a shit load of trouble, you pompous little bastard."

"How long have I got?" Ianto asked hoarsely, not entirely sure that he wanted to know. Spence smirked.

"Enough time to stew over it, I can tell you that much. You see, the Director is a little preoccupied right now, so you just might have a bit of a wait on your hands. Make no mistake, though, Jones. You are going to be executed, and even though I may not get to do it myself, I'm still going to enjoy watching you die."

Ianto twisted away, out of Spence's hold, and glared at him in hatred.

"Fuck you."

Spence uttered a short, sardonic laugh.

"Me? No, Jones, you're the one who's fucked. What I just don't get, though, is why? You had a good thing here. A good job, great pay… a girlfriend, even! Why throw all of that away for a freak that couldn't even tell you his own name?"

Ianto was quite proud of the control he exerted in not showing surprise at that. Had Jack reverted to refusing to talk? Or was it that the powers that be simply hadn't tried to talk to him yet? He dared not spend too much time speculating — not with Spence standing over him like this.

"For starters," Ianto said tersely, "my girlfriend was a self-absorbed bitch who was only concerned with status and money, the job generally sucked and the pay was shit. Joe was the only one who showed any real appreciation, and I can tell you right now that I'd do it all the same way again if I had the chance. So seriously, Dr Spence, fuck you."

Ianto's head rocked back and collided with the wall behind him when Spence punched him again, and this time he tasted blood in his mouth.

"You little bastard," Spence snarled. "You have no idea of the damage you've done, do you? The Secure Archives operated just fine until you came along and injected everyone with a social fucking conscience. We didn't need you coming in and fucking everything up!"

Ianto sneered at him, ignoring the blood that he could feel trickling down his chin.

"May I remind you, sir, that you're the one who hired me?"

"And I regret it every day," Spence shot back. "But tell me, Jones, what do you regret?"

"Aside from getting caught?" Ianto retorted. "Nothing."

"Oh, really? So, then this won't bother you."

He slipped a hand into his pocket and brought out a slightly worn photograph. Ianto looked, and uttered a cry of horror, to which Spence responded with a cruel laugh.

"Poor little Tomas. You got him killed, Jones. He died begging for his life, and cursing you and the freak with his last breath."

"I don't believe that," Ianto whispered hoarsely. He tore his gaze away from the picture and glared up at Spence. "Tomas was stronger than that. I bet he went down fighting."

"Believe what you want. I was there. I was the one who killed him. He died squealing like a stuck pig…"

Ianto reacted before he had a chance to think about what he was doing. With a scream of rage, Ianto launched himself forward and tackled Spence to the floor. His reflexes were diminished, though, and Spence quickly wrestled him to the floor, and proceeded to beat into him until all Ianto could do was lie there helplessly and moan in pain.

"Fucking little arsehole," Spence growled, making no effort to keep a large bead of saliva from dripping from his own mouth onto Ianto's face. "Pity I could never prove Adams was in on your little escape. Bet that would have gotten an even better reaction."

Shaking his head in disgust, he slapped Ianto cruelly across the face a couple of times before hoisting himself back up to his feet and stalking out of the cell.

Ianto was barely aware of the loud clang of the cell door closing. Tears stained his cheeks and mixed with the blood on his face. Sobbing heavily and overcome with grief for his dead colleague, he curled up into as tight a ball as he could on the floor, and tried futilely to will himself back into the welcome oblivion of sleep.

* * *

He didn't know how long he'd been there for, lying on the cold, hard floor and wallowing in misery and grief. Minutes or hours, it meant nothing to him, and he fully expected that when the door opened again, it would mean his death.

When he did eventually hear it open, he shut his eyes and tried to steady his breathing. Whatever happened, whatever was said or done, he would not beg for his life. He was determined that he was going to keep what little remained of his dignity, no matter what.

Someone was standing over him now, and he had little difficulty imagining the gun that they probably held, all ready to deliver him to his maker. He swallowed a whimper, but couldn't quite contain the tremors that racked his body. As little as he wanted to die, he couldn't help but wish that they would just hurry up and get on with it.

Then, a hand alighted gently on his shoulder, and he barely suppressed a yelp of fright.

"Hey, easy, mate. It's just me."

Ianto twisted around, pushing himself up onto his elbows and staring up at the newcomer in shock.

"Gage?"

The older man smiled sadly at his former colleague.

"I was hoping to see you again, but not in this place. C'mon, up you get."

Ianto grunted softly in pain as Gage helped him up and guided him to the bench.

"You're hurt?" he asked in concern, but Ianto waved off his concerns.

"Nothing serious. Spence was in here earlier... thought he'd get a few cheap shots in."

"Ah. He would, the bastard. Wouldn't dare to do anything more, though. Word is, Hartman wants to deal with you herself."

Ianto grimaced.

"Yeah, I heard." He paused, looking sideways at his friend. "What about you? Are you okay?"

"Me? Yeah, I'm fine. I think they've been watching me pretty closely for the last couple of months... Spence made it pretty clear he thinks I was involved in your escape, but he was never able to prove it. But they've been watching me anyway. So yeah, I'm okay. Tomas, though..."

"I know," Ianto cut him off quietly. "Spence took a lot of pleasure in telling me about him. Said he killed him personally. God, I'd love to shoot him myself."

"You'd have to get in line," Gage muttered, "and trust me when I say it's a long line. But I bet one thing Spence didn't tell you is that Tomas head-butted him and broke his nose."

Ianto raised an eyebrow, and Gage nodded in confirmation.

"Oh yeah. A mate got hold of the CCTV footage. It's not easy to watch, but Tomas did us all proud. He didn't let them break him, and he went out fighting."

Ianto sighed, taking precious little consolation in the news.

"Do me a favour," Gage murmured, shifting carefully on the bench to partially block any view of Ianto from the CCTV camera in the corner of the cell. "Remember to shake your head and act like you're yelling at me, because I'm supposed to be trying to convince you to cooperate."

Suspicion flooded Ianto.

"Cooperate how?"

Gage grimacd briefly.

"With Joe. He's gone wild again, Ianto. No one can get near him without shooting him first." He shook his head and chuckled humourlessly. "I told that stupid bitch Hartman not to tell him that you were dead. It's her own fucking fault."

Ianto's stomach twisted almost painfully into knots.

"He... He thinks I'm dead?"

"Yeah. I was told to come in here and tell you that they'd let him see you on the condition that you tell him to cooperate."

"Like fuck I will."

Gage chuckled.

"Yeah, I said you'd probably say that."

Ianto grabbed Gage's wrist, suddenly desperate.

"Have you seen him? You could tell him I'm not dead, Gage. You have to tell him that!"

An apologetic look filled Gage's face.

"They won't let me anywhere near him, Ianto. This is the first time that I've seen either one of you since before you escaped."

"Shit," Ianto whispered. Tears burned in his eyes as he imagined how utterly alone Jack had to be feeling. It wasn't all that difficult to imagine, because that was much how he was feeling right then.

"Ianto, what happened? What the hell went wrong? It's been nearly two months, and I thought you would have been long gone from London by now."

"We should have been," Ianto said bitterly. "We _could_ have been, if I'd had any brains. But I was waiting for someone who never turned up."

"Do you mean who I think you mean?"

Ianto said nothing, and only looked intently at Gage.

"Right," Gage muttered. "Got it."

"He really believes I'm dead?" Ianto asked softly, changing the subject back to Jack. He felt sick to his stomach at the thought. Gage returned his stare with a bleak look.

"Spence made me watch. Hartman was there, waiting for Joe to... you know, come back. When he did, he started crying and asking for you. Hartman actually walked right up to him and slapped him across the face. Told him to shut up and act like a man."

Ianto snorted derisively.

"Hypocritical bitch. Treats him like an animal, but tell him to act like a man."

"I know. Anyway, he kept asking, 'Where's Yan?' 'I want Yan.' It was all he'd say. In the end, she said that you were dead, and he was never going to see you again so he might as well get over it and start cooperating."

"And...?" Ianto asked softly. He suspected he knew what was coming, and he wasn't far off in his assumption.

"He went berserk," Gage told him. "He started screaming, and he grabbed hold of Hartman... had her by the throat. Bloody hell, Ianto, I really thought he was going to kill her for sure, but they stunned him before he could do any real damage."

Ianto swallowed an urge to comment. As little as he cared for Hartman, he didn't want her weighing on Jack's conscience in any way, shape or form.

"The bastards just shot him dead, of course," Gage went on bitterly. "Then, when he came back, he just curled up in a corner and cried. Anyone who tries to get near him, now, and he just literally snarls at them. One stupid git didn't have any brains, and thought he was just bluffing. Joe broke his arm and nearly choked him before someone shot him."

"Jack," Ianto said automatically, and promptly wanted to kick himself. Even though he trusted Gage, it was still a stupid thing to do, to let slip Jack's real name within the walls of Torchwood. For his part, Gage looked confused.

"Sorry, what...?"

"It isn't Joe," Ianto said with a sigh. "He remembered his name... or, at least, partly. His name is Jack."

"Jack, huh? Yeah, I can see that. He looks like a Jack."

"Gage," Ianto said softly, anxiously, "you need to get in to see him. Somehow, you have to let him know that I'm alive. Please, Gage. It'll destroy him to think I'm dead."

Gage didn't hesitate, despite knowing that what he was agreeing to could quite likely get him killed. As far as he was concerned, he should have been dead already along with Tomas. He had nothing left to lose.

"I'll find a way," he promised. "I swear it, Ianto." He paused, looking with grief at the younger man. "I'm probably not going to see you again. You know that, right? We're both dead men walking."

Ianto smiled grimly.

"I know, Gage. I just hope it won't be too long before someone comes along who can succeed where I fucked up, and get Jack out of here for good."

Gage sighed regretfully.

"At least you'll meet God with a clean conscience."

Ianto's stomach twisted yet again.

"Not quite."

"What are you talking about?"

Ianto let his breath out in a rush.

"Just... Tell him I was wrong, and that I'm sorry. Tell him I love him."

Gage looked confused, but he didn't question him. Standing awkwardly, he lingered just long enough to lay a supportive hand on Ianto's shoulder.

"Be strong, Ianto."

With that, he left Ianto alone once more in his cold, lonely cell.

* * *

When the Doctor and Rose finally came back, Jackie had had a very distinct idea of what she'd intended on doing. First of all, she'd take them back to the apartment, where Jack and Ianto would be waiting, and there'd be a lovely reunion, and the Doctor would agree to take Jack with them, so that he never had to be afraid again. And then, there would be a second reunion when the ghost shift happened, and Rose saw her grandfather.

Except, Jack and Ianto were gone, taken away by the people they'd been trying so hard to escape, and all of a sudden Jackie found she'd lost her enthusiasm for just about everything — including the ghost shifts.

It hadn't been lost on her that Jack reacted badly every time the ghost appeared in the apartment, or that Ianto has been highly suspicious of the faceless entity. He'd at one stage voiced an opinion that Torchwood possibly had something to do with the strange entities appearing everywhere and, if that was true, then Jack was right and the ghost shifts were something to be feared, not welcomed.

And so, on the morning that she finally heard the grinding engines of the TARDIS — nearly a full day after Jack and Ianto had been taken by Torchwood — Jackie Tyler found herself unwilling to be there for the appearance of the ghost in her apartment. Preoccupied with the grief over what had happened... and what was currently happening... to Jack and Ianto, she waited outside her apartment and watched grimly as her daughter rounded the corner with her alien boyfriend/companion/whatever he happened to be.

"Mum!" Rose shouted enthusiastically, waving and hurrying up to the steps to greet her. Jackie hugged her daughter tightly for a long moment before pulling back and looking past her to the Doctor. The lanky alien smiled easily at her, his hands shoved deep into his coat pockets.

"Hello, Jackie."

Her eyes narrowed, and she nodded towards the door of the apartment.

"Get in there. I want to talk to you."

The Doctor's eyebrows lifted in surprise and suddenly consternation, but he nevertheless followed her and Rose into the apartment.

"What's wrong, Mum?" Rose asked as Jackie ushered them into the lounge room.

"Right now?" Jackie asked tersely. "Just about everything." She looked from Rose to the Doctor, as though trying to decide what to say. That in itself put Rose on edge. Her mother was never one to be at a loss for words.

"Mum, what's going on?" Rose asked.

"Does the name Jack mean anything to either of you?" Jackie asked finally. Immediately, she noticed the grief that shadowed her daughter's features at the mention of that name. More pointedly, though, was the deer-caught-in-headlights look that the Doctor was suddenly wearing. It was gone in an instant, but she knew she'd seen it.

"He was a friend," Rose said finally, simply.

"A friend?" Jackie queried.

"Yeah." Rose shoved her hair roughly back behind her ears. "He saved my life a while back, and then he travelled with us for a while. Why?"

"And what happened to him?" Jackie pressed. At that point, the Doctor took a step forward, and the expression on his face was hard and uncompromising.

"Jackie, leave it."

She wheeled around to face him, in no mood to put up with his attitude.

"No, I'm not going to bloody leave it! I want to know! What happened to him?"

"He died, all right?" Rose burst out, tears filling her eyes. "Remember when I came back in the TARDIS without the Doctor? You know back when he was... different. Well, Jack was back on Satellite Five with the Doctor, fighting the Daleks. And he died there, all right?"

Jackie squeezed Rose's hand lightly, and then looked to the Doctor with an adamant stare.

"Is it true? Did he die there?"

"Yes," the Doctor admitted finally, quietly. "It's true. Jack died on Satellite Five. I told Rose differently at the time, because I wanted to spare her that grief, but she worked it out anyway."

"Not the whole story, I'll bet," Jackie growled. Rose blinked, staring at her mother like she'd grown a second head.

"Mum, what are you talking about?"

Turning, Jackie strode over to the shelf near the television, and picked up a small, framed photo. It was a picture she'd taken a few weeks after Jack and Ianto had arrived, and was of the two of them as they sat together on the couch, with Ianto listening intently while Jack read aloud. Ianto had been momentarily horrified, until she'd reminded him that she was perfectly capable of printing off pictures from a digital camera within the sanctity of her own home, and that no one else would ever see it.

Now, she thrust the picture at Rose and the Doctor, and Rose took it in trembling hands.

"Oh my god... It's him! It's Jack! When was this taken?"

"About four weeks ago," Jackie said coldly, her eyes locked onto the Doctor like targeting lights.

"He's alive," Rose whispered, fresh tears filling her eyes. A moment later, realisation struck and she spun around to face the Doctor. "Did you know Jack was alive?"

By that time, the Doctor looked very much like he wanted to turn and run, and Jackie carefully positioned herself to block any attempt he might make to bolt.

"Well..." he started awkwardly, "when you say _alive_..."

Rose took a step towards him, and Jackie could see the beginnings of anger taking hold. Maybe, she mused, she wasn't going to have to give the arrogant git a slap after all. Maybe, just maybe, Rose would do it instead.

"We left him behind, Doctor. First you told me he was rebuilding the Earth, and then you said he'd died. Are you telling me now that he didn't?"

"He died," the Doctor said firmly. "He died a hero to give me the time I needed. Now, can we please leave it at that?"

"No, we can't just leave it at that," Jackie snapped. "I'm going to ask you a question, Doctor, and so help me, you'd better give me a straight answer. None of your mouthy rubbish, do you understand me? I want a straight and simple answer."

He stared down at her wordlessly and though his expression was blank, there was a veritable storm brewing in his eyes. Jackie went on, feeling her own anger building as she recalled a scared and broken man who had spent the last six or seven weeks living in terror of being recaptured by those whose only purpose was to hurt him.

"Did you know what happened to Jack?"

"Of course he knew, Mum," Rose said in confusion. "He was there!"

Jackie ignored her, and kept her focus completely on the Doctor. He stared right back. He said nothing, and he didn't have to. His expression told her everything she needed to know.

"You son of a bitch!" she exploded, and slapped him as hard as she could across the face. The Doctor's head rocked to the side from the force of the blow, and sent him reeling backwards. His foot caught on the corner of the coffee table, and he fell backwards onto the couch. There he sat, one hand coming up to cradle his cheek.

"Ouch!" he whined but, tellingly, never asked what the slap was for.

"Mum!" Rose cried out. "What did you do that for?"

Jackie glared down at the Doctor. As satisfying as that had been, she was already itching to slap him again. Any little excuse would be enough and, judging by the look on his face, he knew it, too.

"Do you want to explain it to her, or shall I?" Jackie demanded. Rose turned her attention to the Doctor, still confused and now a little frightened.

"What's going on? Will someone please talk to me?"

"Jack was dead," the Doctor said finally, soberly. "A Dalek exterminated him right outside the control room, but he was saved from death."

"What?" Rose exclaimed. "How?"

Slowly, the Doctor looked from Jackie to Rose.

"By you, Rose."

Rose's jaw dropped, as did Jackie's.

"Me...? What are you talking about?"

Slowly, the Doctor got to his feet again and he favoured Jackie with a bitter look.

"There's a very good reason why I never told Rose the truth about what happened in that room. I wanted to protect her from the knowledge of what she'd done."

"What?" Rose pressed, suddenly frightened. "What did I do, Doctor?"

"You absorbed the Time Vortex," he told her. "You opened the heart of the TARDIS and absorbed the Time Vortex itself. I didn't defeat the Daleks. You did. And you brought Jack back to life."

Suddenly, it was Rose's turn to sit down suddenly.

"I... I don't remember."

"I know," the Doctor said.

"How did Rose bring Jack back to life?" Jackie demanded to know.

"She used the power of the Vortex. She brought him back with that, but she couldn't control it. She went a step too far and brought him back forever."

"Forever?" Rose echoed. "What do you mean, forever?"

"I mean, you made him immortal. He can't die, Rose. He can't ever die. You made him an anomaly. A fixed point in time and space. He shouldn't exist."

Slowly, realisation dawned.

"That's why you wouldn't go back for him," she whispered in shock. "It wasn't because he was helping to rebuild the Earth at all, was it?"

"I was regenerating," the Doctor admitted. "I wasn't ready to deal with what he'd become."

Jackie's fingers flexed at her side.

"Would you have ever gone back for him?"

The Doctor looked around at her, his expression unapologetic.

"No."

The sound of flesh striking flesh filled the room as Jackie slapped him again across the face.

"You bastard," she whispered, tears spilling from her own eyes. "You have no idea what you've done."

"Mum," Rose said suddenly, "where is he? This photo, it was taken in here. Where is he now?"

"I don't know," Jackie admitted. "They were ambushed yesterday in the playground, and taken prisoner."

"By who?" the Doctor asked, frowning.

"By the bastards that they'd been trying to get away from," Jackie told him. "By Torchwood."

"Torchwood?" Rose echoed. "Isn't that who Harriet Jones called to shoot down the Sycorax ship?"

The Doctor nodded.

"Yes, it is."

Shaking her head, Rose got up.

"I think I need a really strong cup of tea."

The Doctor watched as Rose disappeared into the kitchen, and then looked back to Jackie.

"I won't apologise."

"I don't want you to apologise to me," Jackie growled. "But you'd better bloody be willing to apologise to him. You have no idea what that poor love has been through, Doctor. You probably don't even care."

"Now that's not true," he protested. She looked sceptical, to say the least.

"Isn't it? The other lad in that photo, his name's Ianto, Doctor. He rescued Jack from Torchwood. Do you know how long he said Jack had been a prisoner in that place? Go on, have a guess."

He didn't answer, and so she told him.

"Over a hundred years. I don't know what he was like when you met him, but the man that spent the last couple of months hiding in this apartment had the state of mind of a child. Those people, whatever they did to him, they destroyed his mind. It was only because of Ianto that he was starting to recover from it. Now this Torchwood... whatever it is... has him back, god knows what they'll do to him now."

"They tortured him?" the Doctor asked.

"In Ianto's words, he was abused, experimented on and tortured," Jackie answered. A small, particularly vicious part of her took a great deal of pleasure in the horror that filled the Doctor's features.

"I didn't know," he insisted. "Jackie, I swear I didn't know."

"Fine," she said tersely. "What I want to know is what are you planning on doing about it? Are you going to run away from him again? Or are you going to do right by him this time?"

The Doctor's jaw tightened noticeably, and she felt a rush of relief at the realisation that he had no intention of running away from Jack a second time.

"Tell me everything you can."

* * *

_to be continued...._


	21. Into the Lions' Den

A half hour later saw the Doctor standing by the same window where Ianto had frequently caught Jack peeking out at the outside world. The look on his face could be described as nothing less than furious, and right at that moment he was every bit the Oncoming Storm. Rose sat on the couch, clutching the photo of Jack and Ianto with tear-filled eyes while Jackie told them everything she knew about Jack's captivity.

"A hundred years?" Rose whispered. "He's been their prisoner for a hundred years?"

"How did they come to be here?" the Doctor asked suddenly. "Did someone help them?"

Jackie answered with a nod.

"Yeah. I didn't know her before this, but she said she knew Rose. Sarah Jane, her name was."

The Doctor sighed. Somehow, he wasn't surprised.

"Good old Sarah Jane."

Abruptly, Rose spoke up incredulously.

"Mum, if Jack was here for nearly two months, where didn't you call me? You've got the mobile number!"

Jackie glowered at her daughter.

"I tried, thankyou very much! You never ruddy answered it! And you're no better, you might as well not have it! Never called me once, did you?"

Rose winced and looked away guiltily, recalling just how many times she'd disregarded calls from her mother.

"All right," the Doctor said finally. "I need to find this Torchwood and get Jack out of there. Jackie, have you got any idea at all where it is?"

"No, sorry. Ianto never said. He didn't like to talk about it at all, really, because of Jack. Although, he seemed to think they might be responsible for the Ghost Shifts."

The Doctor stared at her, puzzled.

"Sorry, the what?"

"The Ghost Shifts," Jackie repeated. "You'll see in about... oh, half an hour or so. See, these ghosts have been appearing every day for well over a month now. Just once a day to start with, and then twice every day from a few weeks back. They're all over London! One even appears in my kitchen!"

"Ghosts?" the Doctor echoed incredulously. "Since when do ghosts have shifts? Since when do shifts have ghosts?"

Jackie turned to Rose, effectively ignoring the Doctor.

"You know, I thought at first it was your grandfather, but I have to confess that now I'm not so sure. Because to start with I was sure I could smell cigarettes. It wasn't very strong at first, but then I just tried harder...."

"The more you want it, the stronger it becomes," the Doctor mused, and Jackie nodded.

"That's right. And I was so positive, but Ianto didn't trust the ghosts. He was sure there was something wrong about it all. I tried to get him to see how wonderful it could be. I mean, think about it. Everyone's loved ones coming back to them. Don't you think that's beautiful?"

The Doctor looked grim.

"I think it's horrifying. I'm sorry, Jackie, but it isn't a natural thing. Your Mr Jones thought there was something wrong, and I think he was right."

"Well, he wasn't the only one who didn't like the Ghost Shifts," Jackie went on. "Poor Jack was just plain terrified of them. Got to the point where he'd go hide in his room and not come out until me or Ianto could go tell him it was over."

"Jack?" Rose echoed incredulously. "Our Jack, scared? Are we really talking about the same bloke, here?"

"I told you, Rose," Jackie said in a soft tone that covered a layer of steel. "Whatever he was like when you knew him, he's changed. Those bloody people at Torchwood changed him."

"This is mad," Rose whispered. "It was only a year ago! Less than!"

"Time isn't a straight line, Rose," the Doctor reminded her. "You know that now. It might have only been a year since we last saw Jack, but for him it's clearly been a lot longer."

"More than a hundred years," Jackie added bitterly. Rose stood up a little too quickly.

"I'm makin' some fresh tea."

She left the room without bothering to ask who else might want a cup.

"He think you're just going to abandon him again, you know," Jackie said once Rose had disappeared through into the kitchen. The Doctor frowned.

"Who? Jack?"

"Who else d'you think I mean, you silly fool?"

"How much does he remember?" the Doctor asked. "Does he remember what happened on Satellite Five?"

"I don't know. Anything like that, it was Ianto that he talked to. What I do know is that the poor love had nightmares nearly every night, and that he was scared to see you again. Why would that be, then?"

The Doctor pushed his fingers absent-mindedly through his hair.

"He has nothing to fear from me. He proved long ago that he was bigger on the inside. I'm the one who's come up short."

"I'll say you have," Jackie growled. "Why'd you do it? Why'd you leave him behind?"

"Because I was a coward," the Doctor admitted. "What Jack had become goes against every law of the Universe. A fixed point should never happen. He was supposed to die on that satellite, but Rose loved him too much to let it happen. She loved him so much that she didn't just give him back his life. She gave him eternity."

"And you weren't angry at her for it?"

The Doctor looked so painfully tired all of a sudden that Jackie found herself wishing she could take back what was clearly a loaded question.

"Everything she did, she did out of love. How could I possibly be angry at her for that?"

"Thankyou," Jackie murmured, albeit reluctantly. "Mind you, I'm not letting you off the hook over Jack. You owe him, Doctor."

"I know," he agreed. "More than you can possibly understand."

* * *

At ten past the hour, Jackie ushered the Doctor into the kitchen to witness the Ghost Shift. He watched the entity with a gravity that was masked by an almost childish enthusiasm.

"Doctor?" Rose asked cautiously as the entity began to fade from sight after a couple of minutes. "What is it?"

"I don't know," the Doctor admitted, "but what I do know is that it's coming through from another dimension. The power being used to pull it through, though, is from this world."

"Torchwood?" Rose guessed.

"Torchwood," the Doctor agreed with a fervour that made Rose grin.

"So, can we track it back to the source?"

"Oh yes," the Doctor confirmed enthusiastically. "Jackie, when it the next Ghost Shift due to happen?"

"This evening. Ten past six."

"Okay. That'll give me enough time, I think."

"Enough time for what?" Jackie asked.

"Enough time to devise a way of tracking the source of these so-called Ghost Shifts back to Torchwood, so that we can find Jack and his friend Ianto, and get them out. This Torchwood isn't going to know what hit them. Nobody interferes with my companions."

As he strode from the apartment to head back to the TARDIS, Rose smiled in relief at her mother.

"We're going to save Jack, Mum."

"Him and Ianto both," Jackie added. Grinning, Rose grabbed her mother by the hand and pulled her towards the door.

"C'mon! Let's go see what he comes up with."

* * *

Nearly six hours later, the three of them stood inside the TARDIS, ready for the next Ghost Shift.

"When it's over," the Doctor said, "I won't be wasting any time following the energy trail to Torchwood's location, so you might want to vacate now, Jackie."

Jackie folded her arms across her chest and positively glowered at him.

"Are you mad? I'm coming along this time, thankyou very much. You're going to need all the help you can get to find them."

"Mum, we'll be fine..." Rose protested, but Jackie silenced her with a look.

"Think about it for a minute, would you? He hasn't seen either one of you for over a hundred years. In his mind, you abandoned him."

"I didn't know," Rose said tensely. "If I had, we would have gone back, issues or not."

"But he doesn't know that," Jackie reminded her. She then turned to the Doctor. "As for you, he isn't going to even recognise you. So say what you like. I'm coming along."

"Oh, all right, then," the Doctor conceded, however reluctantly. "Just... don't touch anything, please."

Jackie pointed at him threateningly.

"Mind you, if we end up on Mars, I'm gonna kill you."

* * *

When the TARDIS landed, and they witnessed the rather heavily armed welcoming party, the Doctor turned to Rose and Jackie and spoke urgently.

"They may or may not know I'm travelling with someone. If they don't, I want you two to wait here until the coast is clear, and then start looking for this Ianto Jones. If they do know, then I want you to come with me, Jackie."

"No!" Jackie protested. "I want to find Jack!"

"We will," the Doctor reassured her. "This Torchwood is a powerful organisation, and any organisation that can keep a man locked up for over a hundred years is going to be arrogant. I can guarantee you, they're not going to be able to resist showing off Jack to me, just to get my reaction. Like you said, he's not going to recognise me, so I need someone to be there who he will recognise and trust. That someone is you, Jackie."

"Well, what about me?" Rose protested. "I hope you don't expect me to just hide in here and wait?"

"Like I said," the Doctor repeated patiently, "when the coast is clear, I need you to find this friend of Jack's. I have feeling we're going to need to bring him along with us, at least to begin with."

"Oh, thank god," Jackie said in relief. "Ianto tried to tell Jack that he couldn't go with him when you came back, and Jack just couldn't accept it. He was totally distraught, the poor love. Didn't want to go anywhere without Ianto."

Rose nodded. She wasn't entirely happy with being given what she considered the lesser task, but conceded nonetheless.

"All right, fine. I'll find this... what's his name? Ianto?"

"They've probably got him locked up somewhere," Jackie told her. "Ianto mentioned a name, though. See if you can find a bloke called Gage Adams. He helped Jack and Ianto to escape to begin with."

Rose nodded again, not bothering to point out that the likelihood of finding one individual in a place like that was slim to remote.

"Gage Adams. Got it. Good luck, you two."

The Doctor smiled grimly.

"And you." He turned towards the door, breathed in deeply and murmured somewhat ominously, "Here we go, then. Allonsy."

* * *

Rose was watching the monitor within the TARDIS, waiting for the area outside the TARDIS to clear, when a jolt knocked her momentarily off balance. She watched on the monitor incredulously as the time ship was hoisted onto the back of some sort of truck, and carried off. Probably, Rose decided, to some research room somewhere.

She grimaced, and hoped that wherever they were deposited, it wasn't too heavily populated.

* * *

Gage couldn't believe his luck. He was starting to think he would have to kill someone to get to Jack, but all of a sudden, Secure Archives were deserted. Oh, he knew where everyone had gone. Like everyone else, he'd heard that the Doctor had arrived. Unlike everyone else, he was in no hurry to see him. After all, despite the alien's enemy status, Yvonne Hartman was still inclined to fawn over him like a bloody celebrity. Consequently, he doubted it would be appreciated if he punched the bastard. It would be even harder to explain why.

And so, when word had spread and everyone hurried off to find a vantage point where they might spot the elusive Time Lord, Gage had stayed put, and now he literally had a free path to Jack's cell.

In reality, it was the same room where Jack had been kept before, but it had been stripped completely of everything that had helped to make it a more hospitable atmosphere. Jack, too, had been stripped of all the clothes that he'd been wearing when Torchwood had recaptured him. Now, he was wearing only a pair of boxers, and had been heavily chained once more. Gage had been furious when he'd seen the CCTV footage, but there had been nothing he could do.

It broke his heart to see Jack being reduced to animal-like status once more, to see all of Ianto's hard work and efforts going down the toilet. To have argued, though, would have meant a slow and painful death. Coward that he was, he'd convinced himself that he would be no use to either Jack or Ianto if he was dead, and so had kept quiet. His one and only satisfaction had been found in Spence's disappointment at having to leave him alone.

Oh, Gage knew he was being watched. He had no doubt about that, and so had been very careful not to do anything to raise suspicions. Now, though, he did have a chance to do something positive for Jack, and he'd decided that he couldn't care less if it got him killed.

No, he had a promise to keep. Find Jack, and tell him Ianto wasn't dead, and that he loved him. He'd promised, and he was going to do it, even if it got him killed.

"_Adams, are you there?_"

Gage cursed softly. Fucking Boyd from Internal Transfers...

"Yes, I'm here," he answered sourly.

"_You must be the only one. Don't you know who's here?_"

"I heard, but someone has to stay. We drew straws. I got the short one."

It was a blatant lie, but a believable one. His resentful tone could easily be mistaken for someone who was upset at missing out on the current excitement.

"_Hard luck to you, mate. Then again, maybe not. Anyway, delivery to Bay Four._"

"What is it?"

"_It's his **ship**, Adams._"

Curious despite his self-professed disinterest, Gage headed to Bay Four to see the infamous ship.

* * *

Rose waited for as long as she dared after the TARDIS had been deposited back on solid ground before risking opening the door. She had no idea where in Torchwood she was, and she wasn't sure how she was going to find this Ianto person, let alone anyone else. After all, she could hardly go up to the first person she saw and ask them where he was. Or rather, she could if she wanted to get caught.

Grimacing, she stepped out and pulled the doors closed behind her. She turned and froze upon discovering that she was being observed. A man stood nearby, watching her with obvious interest. Deciding to try for casual, she shoved her hands into her pockets and spoke frostily.

"What's the matter with you? Never seen anyone come out of a police box before?"

"As a matter of fact, no," the man replied with a hint of amusement. "I haven't."

"Well, then, first time for everything, isn't there?" she retorted. She made to walk past him, and almost thought she'd gotten away with it when he reached out and snagged her wrist.

"Yes or no. Do you travel with the Doctor?"

She tried to pull away, but he had her in an iron grip.

"You don't let me go right now, and you won't be having kids, yeah?" she growled. He didn't react to the threat, except to tighten his hold on her.

"Yes or no! Quickly!"

"All right! Yes! Why, what's it to you? You gonna lock me up as well, are you?"

Abruptly, he released his grip on her arm, and she only barely kept from falling.

"Sorry. I just needed to know. And no, I'm not going to lock you up, but we need to do something or the first person to see you will. Here..." He grabbed an abandoned lab coat from a nearby table, and held it out to her. "Put this on, quickly. And can you come with me? There's something you have to see."  
She'd barely gotten the coat on before he was running from the room. Hoping she was doing the right thing, Rose hurried after him.

* * *

"Oi, what's your name?" Rose demanded as she caught up with him. He glanced across at her, never slowing his pace.

"Gage Adams."

Her breath caught, and she could barely believe her luck.

"Oh my god! I was supposed to find you! I was told you could help me find someone called Ianto!"

Gage came to an abrupt halt, and Rose barely avoided running straight into him.

"Oi, careful!" she burst out. Gage, however, stared at her with wide eyes.

"You know Ianto?"

"Well, no, not personally," she answered. "But my mum does... God, doesn't it feel weird saying that?"

A wry smile tugged at the corner of Gage's mouth.

"Doesn't matter, and I'm probably better off not knowing. Look, don't worry. I'll take you to Ianto, for sure. But there's someone else I need to take you to first."

And suddenly, Rose felt her heart rate sky-rocket as she realised just who Gage was talking about.

"Jack? Please tell me you're talking about Jack?"

"So you do know him, then?"

"Yeah," Rose whispered, suddenly having to fight off a new wave of tears. "I do. I just hope that he knows me."

Gage smiled sympathetically at her.

"I think he will. C'mon. I'll take you to him, but we have to hurry."

* * *

When they got to the room, Gage had a sudden moment of panic that maybe the codes had been changed, locking him out. He had a way in if that was the case, but the less time wasted, the better. What with Tomas's fate, and the very blatant threats issued from Spence and the hierarchy, Gage couldn't be certain that none of the Secure Archives team would turn them in if they happened to come back and discover them. He couldn't blame them for it, either, which only added to the urgency of the situation. Apparently, though, no one else was considered a risk with Ianto locked up, though, for the code that he entered in immediately released the heavy security door.

He was just about to warn Rose about what she might find beyond the door, when she pushed past him and strode into the room.

"Oh my god... Jack..."

A distressed sob escaped Rose's lips as she stared at the battered and cowed figure that was chained to the far wall of the room. Even Gage was horrified by the level of abuse that had been inflicted on Jack in such a short period of time. Between that, and letting the poor sod believe that Ianto was dead, it was no wonder that Jack had gone feral again.

Rose approached him slowly, and she was within a couple of metres of him when Jack lifted his head.

"Those bastards!" Rose exploded at the sight of his swollen and lacerated face. She started to reach out to him, only to stumble backwards in fright when Jack lunged forward as far as the chains would allow – which wasn't all that far – and snarled loudly at her.

"Jack, it's me," she said desperately. "It's Rose! Don't you remember? Dancin' on top of your Chula ship in the middle of a German air raid? Chasing the Slitheen? The Daleks?"

He didn't react to her words, instead lowering his head to arms and watching her almost sullenly through half-lidded eyes.

"He doesn't know who I am," she whispered, distraught. "He doesn't remember..."

Gage touched her shoulder tentatively.

"It's been a long time since he saw you, and the bastards here have done everything they could to strip away his humanity. Let me try, please?"

Feeling frustrated and helpless, Rose nodded her reluctant consent and stepped back to let Gage through. Stepping past her and crouched down in front of Jack, just out of reach.

"Jack! Look at me, lad. It's me, it's Gage. C'mon, now. I know you remember me."

Slowly, Jack lifted his head, and the sullen resentment crumbled away to make way for entirely new emotions.

"Gage...?"

Gage smiled with relief, and finally closed the distance between them. Jack lifted up his chained arms towards the other man and uttered a wordless cry of grief and distress, to which Gage responded by wrapping Jack up in a fierce hug. Jack promptly burst into a flood of tears, clinging to Gage as though his very life depended on it.

"There, now," Gage murmured. "It's going to be all right."

"Yan," Jack sobbed, clutching at Gage in despair. Gage smoothed down his mussed-up hair tenderly.

"Listen to me, Jack. They lied to you. Ianto isn't dead. He's alive."

Jack stared up at Gage with wide eyes, his tears suddenly forgotten.

"Yan... Not dead?"

"Not dead," Gage assured him. "Look, now. See who else is here? Do you remember her?"

Jack looked past Gage to Rose, who was struggling not to cry again. At first, there was nothing in his expression to suggest that he remembered her. Gradually, though, recognition dawned, and his face slowly lit up.

"Rose..."

She hurried forward and threw her arms around him, sobbing softly.

"Jack... I am so sorry. God, you must hate me so much."

Jack uttered a soft whimper, and buried his battered face in her hair.

"We need a key or something," she said finally. "Got to get these chains off him."

"Here, I've got something better than a key," Gage said, and pulled a strange looking device from within his jacket. "It's alien tech that came to us from the old base in Cardiff. Opens any lock in under forty-five seconds. Just hang on, and we'll have those chains off before you know it."

The device worked quickly and well, and Jack was released from the cruel chains.

"Look at this," Rose said in dismay, taking one of Jack's hands gently in her own to examine the bloodied gouges that the manacles had made in his flesh.

"I can get some bandages," Gage offered, but Rose shook her head.

"No. Don't worry about it. We can get these sorted out back in the TARDIS. Best medical care in the universe. Right, Jack?"

Jack didn't answer, but continued to stare at her curiously. Rose got up and tried to urge him to his feet.

"C'mon, Jack. We're going to get you safely into the TARDIS, yeah? C'mon, it's time to go home. Don't you want to go home?"

"Home," Jack murmured, and suddenly his face screwed up and he shook his head, stubbornly refusing to move. "No."

Rose blinked, not quite sure she'd heard right.

"No? Sorry, what?"

"Don't want to go," Jack insisted, his expression hardening. Confused and frustrated, Rose looked over at Gage for help. Gage chuckled softly.

"Sorry, Rose, but you've got no chance to getting him to go anywhere without his Ianto."

One look told her Gage was right in his assessment, and she bit back a frustrated sigh. Instead, she carded her fingers through Jack's matted hair, and cupped his cheek lovingly.

"Haven't changed that much, have you? Still won't leave anyone behind."

Her words triggered a fresh wave of guilt at the knowledge that that was exactly what she and the Doctor had done to him. Shoving those unhelpful thoughts to the back of her mind, Rose made a quick decision.

"All right, then. Let's just find your Ianto, and then we'll get you back to the TARDIS. Okay?"

They were clearly the magic words, for Jack abruptly scrambled to his feet, heedless of his bruised and swollen ankles and feet.

"Yan!" he burst out, taking a few stumbling steps towards the door. Gage quickly positioned himself at Jack's side, gently encouraging the other man to lean on him.

"All right," he agreed. "Let's go get Yan."

* * *

Ianto was sitting on the hard bench, his face buried in his hands, when his cell door swung open. He didn't bother to lift his head. If it was Yvonne Hartman finally come to execute him, then he was not going to give her the satisfaction of seeing how afraid he really was. Consequently, he never saw who it was that appeared in the doorway of his cell, and he was caught totally off-guard when someone literally barrelled into him, nearly knocking him off the bench, and began to smother his face with a torrent of kisses.

"What...?" Ianto sputtered, and he finally looked and found himself staring at a face that he honestly had not expected to see again. "Jack...?"

Before he had a chance to get another word out, Jack all but dove in and kissed him squarely on the mouth. Startled though he was, this time Ianto didn't push him away. When Jack did pull back of his own accord, Ianto immediately responded by pulling Jack into a ferocious and protective hug.

"Cariad, I am so sorry. I didn't mean what I said. I do love you, Jack. I love you so very much."

"Love you, Yan," Jack sobbed against his shoulder. Still holding Jack to him, Ianto looked back towards the door.

"Gage?"

Gage smiled wearily at his friend.

"Yeah. Not just me, though."

He stepped to one side, allowing Rose to see into the cell. Ianto gasped softly in shock.

"Rose? My god, it is Rose, isn't it?"

She smiled tearfully, and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm Rose. And you must be the famous Ianto Jones. Got my mum wrapped around your finger, you have. Not to mention this one wasn't going anywhere until we'd rescued you, too."

Ianto ruffled Jack's hair lovingly, delighting in the contented sigh that met the gesture.

"You silly old fool. All right, you've rescued me. Now, we need to get out of here."

"We'll be safe in the TARDIS," Rose said, and Ianto's eyes widened.

"The TARDIS? You mean... _he's_ here, too?"

Rose reached out to grasp Ianto's shoulder gently.

"We arrived back home this morning. Mum told us everything. We came to get you both out of Torchwood, Ianto. Now, will you both get up so that we can get back to the TARDIS, and I can call the Doctor and tell him you're both safe?"

Grinning suddenly, despite his own antipathy towards the Doctor, Ianto got up and urged Jack up as well.

"C'mon, sweetheart. We're getting out of here."

Jack clutched anxiously at Ianto's arm, though, panic in his eyes.

"Please don't leave me, Yan toe," he pled softly. Before Ianto had a chance to respond, Rose spoke for him.

"Don't you worry, Jack. He's coming with us, whether he likes it or not. He's not leaving you. Not yet."

Ianto frowned a little, but Jack was placated and finally allowed Ianto to lead him back out into the corridor. Gage took the lead to take them back to Bay Four when he froze in his tracks at the sight of a familiar and extremely unwelcome individual who had just entered the corridor at the very far end.

"Fuck... It's Spence!"

Ianto didn't hesitate. He wheeled around and took off at a run, pulling Jack along with him. Gage and Rose followed, having no other alternative.

"Ianto, there's no way out down this end," Gage called to him as loudly as he dared. "It's just the research labs!"

"So we hide in one until he's gone," Ianto growled back. "We can't let him see us, Gage, and none of us has a weapon. He might be a sadistic bastard, but he's not stupid. If he finds us, he'll shoot first and ask later. Now, c'mon!"

They continued to run, with Jack stumbling along behind Ianto as best as he could manage. Finally, Ianto came to an abrupt halt and his fingers flew over the keypad of one particular door. The light flashed green, unlocking it and letting them in. The four almost fell into the room, and Gage quickly closed and locked it behind them.

"Now, let's just hope the bastard doesn't come this far down," he grumbled, quietly wishing he at least had a stun stick to use on his boss. There was no response from any of his companions, and he turned to see what was wrong. It wasn't difficult to see what had all their attention – even Jack's, and Gage swore softly in shock.

"What in the fucking hell is _that_?"

* * *

_to be continued..._  



	22. Before the Storm

Jackie Tyler was fuming. Absolutely bloody furious. She had fully expected the Doctor to do his thing, and force them to surrender Jack and Ianto to him. She'd hoped that he would have. But then Yvonne bloody Hartman had shown him that freaky bloody sphere, and he forgot all about why they were there in the first place.

She wanted to slap him again, and from the way he was avoiding looking at her, she suspected that he knew it, too.

Right then, Hartman was prattling on about her ruddy ghost shifts, and something about an alternate power source. Most of it went over Jackie's head, and regardless, she was only interested in one thing. Taking advantage of a brief lull in the conversation, Jackie grabbed the Doctor's arm and spoke in a angry hiss.

"What about Jack and Ianto? You'd better not have forgotten about them!"

Hartman, who had been supervising one of her subordinates, turned sharply to stare at them.

"What was that, Miss Tyler?"

The Doctor clamped a hand over Jackie's mouth even as she started to respond, and spoke dismissively.

"Never mind her. She's just babbling. Does that a lot, lately, babbles. Interesting word, that, actually. Rolls nicely off the tongue, don't you think? Babble..."

Hartman, however, was not to be distracted, and she cut the Doctor off sharply.

"That's quite enough of that, Doctor. Now, what did you say, Miss Tyler?"

Jackie pulled away from the Doctor and spoke angrily, ignoring his obvious frustration.

"You've got two boys locked up here somewhere. Jack and Ianto. Where are they?"

Hartman looked amused, much to Jackie's rapidly increasing aggravation.

"Jack? So that's its name. I have to admit, I had wondered if it even had an identity of its own."

And abruptly, the Doctor forgot his frustration towards Jackie, and turned on Hartman with a frightening ferocity.

"He is _not_ an _it_."

An infuriatingly smug smile spread across the director's face.

"It isn't even human, Doctor. Now that we're on the subject, though, I am curious. Rumour is that it was once your companion. I don't suppose you'd care to clarify that for us? I believe there are several bets going on it. Although, personally, I'd be inclined to bet against it being true. After all, you wouldn't class it as a companion so much as a…"

"Pet?" someone at one of the terminals suggested when she paused, and a ripple of laughter went through the room. It was quickly silenced, though, when the Doctor turned his furious glare on the offending worker. Hartman, however, was unperturbed.

"That's it, exactly. A pet! That is, of course, if you like feral dogs."

Jackie started forward, and was only held back by the Doctor's iron grip on her arm. She glared at him, enraged, but his attention was solely on Hartman.

"I want to see him. _Now_."

To his quiet fury, Hartman didn't so much as flinch in the face of his demand. Instead, she smirked to herself and turned to the closest computer terminal, quickly typing in a command that would bring up the CCTV link to Jack's cell. A moment later, they were looking at the image of a stark white, bare cell on the monitor. A cell that was unmistakably empty.

"Something the matter?" the Doctor queried. The rage in his tone had all but evaporated, and now he was watching her with ill-suppressed amusement. Ignoring him, Hartman activated her comm. device and spoke quickly.

"Robin, get the hell back to Secure Archives. It's out of its cell! …Probably Adams, you idiot! I warned you never to leave him alone down there. Now go! And check on Jones while you're at it."

She promptly cancelled the connection and smiled frostily at the Doctor.

"Just a minor issue. We'll have it back under control soon enough."

She turned away again, and Jackie shot the Doctor a suspicious look, which he returned with a tiny, smug grin.

"Just you wait," she hissed at him. "I'm gonna slap you so hard when we get out of here!"

The Doctor didn't reply, and though he continued to grin, on the inside he was in turmoil. He only hoped that if indeed it was Rose who was responsible for the break-out, then she had been successful in getting both Jack and his friend to the safety of the TARDIS. He dreaded to think of what might happen if she was caught. He dared not imagine it. And as for Jack, who had been Torchwood's prisoner for so long now…

Though the Doctor dared not admit it to either Jackie or Rose, he was not looking forward at all to seeing Jack again. Part of that had to do with his discomfort with Jack as a fixed point, but it was also very strongly to do with guilt — an emotion that he was not used to experiencing in this particular regeneration. He had used Jack and then abandoned him, effectively abusing the faith Jack had placed in him. He couldn't imagine what it must have been like for Jack, to be the only living person left on Satellite Five, and then to be trapped and imprisoned on Earth for more than a lifetime.

What the Doctor truly feared was to look into those pale blue eyes once more, and see condemnation and hatred rather than forgiveness and love. Oh, make no mistake, he knew what he deserved; it wasn't forgiveness and mostly certainly not love. However, even after all this time he believed he knew Jack, and he wanted more than anything to believe that the former Time Agent was essentially still the same man who had died for him on that godforsaken satellite so far into the future.

He just prayed to Rassilon that Jack would once more show that he was bigger on the inside.

* * *

Gage walked forward slowly, his eyes fixed on the massive sphere that was suspended at the other end of the room, well above their heads. Just looking at the damned thing made him feel sick to his stomach, and a brief glance told him that Rose and Ianto were experiencing much the same reaction. Jack, however…

He felt no surprise to see that Jack had scuttled away from all of them to cower in the far corner of the room, as far away from the sphere as it was possible to be. There was a look of wide-eyed terror on his face, and even as Gage watched, he buried his face in his arms in a futile attempt to hide.

Gage nudged Ianto, who nodded grimly in acknowledgement. He, too, had immediately noticed Jack's reaction to the sphere, and didn't seem surprised by it. Neither had a chance to comment, though, as the researcher manning the lab approached them.

"Adams? And… my god, is that you, Jones? Bloody hell, what are you two doing here? And weren't you locked up, Jones? And who the hell are those two… Shit, it's him, isn't it? The thing that you escaped with! The creature…"

Ianto's already frayed temper came dangerously close to snapping, and he wheeled around to glare at the man.

"He's not a thing! Stop calling him that!"

No one had the opportunity to reply to that, because at that moment the door behind them opened and Spence strode in. He had a gun in his hand, and a triumphant sneer on his face.

"Got you," he snarled, his focus directly on Ianto. "Did you really think we'd let you get away from us again? You stupid little bastard, you won't live to see the end of today now."

Ianto's breath caught as he spotted Jack in the corner. At Spence's appearance, Jack's fear dissipated and was replaced with a primal rage and hatred, all of which was directed entirely towards Robin Spence. Ianto could see him tensing, and realised with horror that he was about to attack.

"Jack, no! Stay there!" Ianto yelled. As much as he wanted to see Spence suffer for everything he'd done, the fact remained that Spence had a gun, and that gave him the upper hand. This was a markedly different situation to that night, weeks ago, when Jack had taken down two drunken bullies who had been armed only with stun sticks. Spence was dead cold sober, and a crack shot, with the sadistic streak to match. No matter what damage Jack might initially be able to do, Spence would still likely as not have time to shoot him dead.

He had no desire to see Jack suffer the pain of being shot again, regardless of whether he came back from it, and so was relieved when Jack relaxed fractionally and sank back into the corner. Spence, however, grinned like a loon and turned to face Jack.

Ianto saw what was coming a second before Spence pulled the trigger. Jack went down with a cry of pain, clutching at the bullet wound in his stomach. Uttering a howl of rage, Ianto disregarded his own advice and charged at Spence, but the other man was simply too quick. The gun swung around and, as Ianto came within arm's length, the butt of the weapon caught Ianto squarely on the temple, sending him to the floor in a dazed heap.

"Little bastard," Spence spat again. He then turned his glare on Gage. "I'll deal with you later."

Leaving Ianto crumpled on the floor, Spence strode over and grabbed Rose roughly by the wrist, pulling her over to the computer monitor.

"Let me go!" she yelled, struggling in vain to escape his grip. She looked anxiously from Ianto to Jack, and her heart clenched painfully as she realised the bullet wound had killed Jack. "You son of a bitch, you killed him!"

"Don't worry, little girl," Spence retorted. "It's not permanent. Now stop fighting me, or I might have to hurt you too!"

Rose ceased her struggles, if only for knowing that she would be of no help to Jack if this lunatic made good on his threat to harm her. Spence typed in the code to link him to the Director's office, and a moment later Yvonne Hartman's face appeared on the screen.

"I found them, Yvonne," he announced smugly. "Jones, Adams and the freak are in the sphere chamber, as well as this one. If I'm not mistaken, she arrived at the same time as the Doctor."

On the monitor, Hartman shifted around to reveal the Doctor beside her.

"Familiar to you, Doctor?"

"Never seen her before in my life."

Had Rose not known the Doctor better, she might have squawked in protest and given the game away. As it was, Hartman's next words prompted her to put up at least another cursory struggle against Spence.

"So you won't mind if we shoot her, then."

The Doctor sighed loudly in mock exasperation.

"Oh well, it was worth a try. All right, _that's_ Rose Tyler."

Hartman's eyebrows rose fractionally, and she turned away from the monitor to stare at someone behind her who was just out of the camera's range.

"So this is…?"

"Her mother, Jackie."

The amusement in Hartman's voice was palpable.

"You take mother and daughter pairs, then?"

The Doctor grimaced, and the look on his face had Rose briefly wanting to laugh.

"Necessity this time, I'm afraid. But please, when this goes down in the history books, don't say I travelled with her mother."

"Ooh, you," Jackie growled.

"Yvonne, what do you want me to do with them?" Spence asked, and it was painfully clear to everyone that he was hoping she'd give the go-ahead to shoot all of them.

"You said you're in the sphere chamber?"

"That's right."

"Fine. Just keep them there for the time being. Keep shooting it if you have to. We'll deal with them after the next ghost shift. You can handle that, can't you, Robin? I don't need to send extra personnel, do I?"

Spence twitched just slightly. He could hear the undercurrent in her tone only too well.

"I've got it covered," he answered tersely. "They're not going anywhere."

Hartman smiled coolly.

"Very good. Next ghost shift is in fifteen minutes. I'll see you down there in thirty."

Then the transmission ended, and the monitor went dark. Spence stared at it for a moment longer before looking around at his unwilling guests with sadistic glee. Gage had, by then, gone to Ianto's side and was helping him to sit up, while holding a handkerchief to the spot on his head where he'd been struck by Spence. Rose took her moment and wrenched free from Spence, and hurried over to Jack. Spence looked around at them all with a cruel grin.

"Half an hour, kids. Start saying your prayers, because you're about to meet your maker."

* * *

_to be continued..._


	23. Trapped

With some effort, Rose pulled Jack up into her arms. She knew what her mother had said about Jack's apparent immortality; she knew the Doctor didn't doubt it, and just a moment ago Gage had smiled and winked at her whilst the lunatic called Spence had his back turned. They all seemed confident that Jack was not going to stay dead, but right at that moment such a miracle seemed impossible to Rose. Right at that moment, Jack was just deadweight in her arm, and she didn't understand at all how he could possibly come back from this.

Trying to put a block on her grief, Rose focused her attention on Jack. He looked no different, really, from when she'd last seen him — right before all hell broke loose on Satellite Five. Even now, a year on for her, she recalled the bittersweet kisses he'd given her and the Doctor. Goodbye kisses, she'd realised afterwards. Indeed, she'd known that all along, even though she'd denied it at the time.

She trailed her fingertips down his face, his chest. He seemed thinner than she remembered, and his body was a testament to the obvious cruelty that he'd suffered. And his hair…

Rose stifled a giggle. She had no trouble recognising one of her mother's attempts at a haircut, although granted, it didn't look so bad on Jack. She couldn't resist rolling her eyes. This was Jack, she reminded herself. There wasn't much that didn't look good on him, dodgy haircuts included.

She rubbed her cheek gently against the top of his head, silently willing him to come back. Of course, she had no way of knowing how it was going to happen; whether it would happened gradually or suddenly, or whether there would be any warning at all.

A shadow fell across them, and she looked up to find a masked Torchwood soldier standing over them. She wondered briefly where he had come from, given that Spence had arrived alone, but then recalled the man had been there already when they stumbled into the room.

She scowled and was about to tell the offending individual to bugger off when she suddenly recognised the eyes that were visible beneath the black headgear.

"Mickey?"

Mickey Smith glanced around, but right at that moment, Spence was pre-occupied with the sphere, lecturing the bored-looking Singh with his theories. Assured at least briefly of privacy, Mickey dropped into a crouch and pulled down his mask to show her his face. There was genuine sorrow and regret in his eyes as he looked down at Jack.

"I'm sorry, Rose. I couldn't do anything to stop him without putting you at risk. I'm really sorry."

Rose didn't ease her grip on Jack's lifeless body.

"S'okay. I just hope he wakes up soon."

Mickey stared at her as if she'd gone mad.

"Rose, he's dead. He's not gonna wake up."

"No, he will," Rose insisted. She slid her fingers lightly through Jack's hair, and pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. "You'll see. Any minute now."

Mickey shook his head in dismay.

"You've been travelling with him for too long, Rose. Gone mad, you have."

"No, she hasn't."

Mickey turned around as Ianto joined them, helped the short distance across the floor by Gage. The Welshman made his way to Jack's other side, opposite Rose, and he took Jack's limp hand in his own.

"He might panic when he comes back. We need to keep him calm... to try and stop Spence from just shooting him again."

Gage glanced around and rolled his eyes.

"Might not be an issue, Ianto. He's well occupied right now being a pompous know-all."

Ianto snorted, and didn't bother to look.

"It is what he's best at."

"You're all mad," Mickey muttered. "You all really think he's coming back? He's dead! There ain't no coming back from that!"

Ianto reached out to gently wipe away the blood from around the bullet wound.

"See for yourself."

Mickey leaned in to look, and his jaw dropped. Right before his eyes, the wound was closing and fading until nothing was left but clean, unmarked flesh. The only evidence remaining that there had ever been any type of injury was the blood that had been split.

Discreetly, Ianto laid a hand over Jack's mouth, muffling the sound of his resurrection moments later. Jack twisted in momentary panic, but it quickly faded as his eyes found Ianto.

"Be quiet, Jack," Ianto whispered to him. "Hush, love."

Tears of pain filled Jack's eyes, but he seemed to comprehend the need for quiet, and all that escaped his lips was the faintest of whimpers.

"It hurts him a lot, coming back to life," Gage explained while Ianto gently drew Jack out of Rose's arms and into his own. Jack responded immediately, curling in towards Ianto and clinging to him miserably.

"He really does love you, doesn't he?" Rose murmured in wonder. Gage smiled at her remark.

"Ianto was kind to him when no one else was. He treated him like a human when the rest of us were guilty of treating him like an animal. So yes, you're right, Miss Tyler. Jack does love Ianto, very much."

"Ouch," Jack whispered, and gingerly rubbed his stomach where he'd been shot. Ianto kissed him lovingly on the cheek and covered Jack's hand with his own.

"I know, sweetheart. I know it hurts. Just try and be as quiet as you can."

"We have to get him to the TARDIS," Rose whispered. "It's the only place where he'll be safe."

"That may be," Ianto answered, "but first we do actually need to get him there, just as you said." He glanced around surreptitiously at Spence, who continued to be oblivious not only to Jack's resurrection, but to the war council that was taking place right under his nose. "First we need to deal with him, or all we'll achieve is to get all of us shot."

A grin spread across Mickey's face as he finally saw something that he was capable of dealing with.

"Leave it to me."

"Mickey..." Rose hissed, but he shook his head.

"Trust me, Rose. I can handle that clown. Just stay here, and don't move."

Rising up, Mickey lifted his gun and walked over to where Spence had all but taken over and was examining the read-outs on the sphere. Nearby, Singh was looking angry and frustrated, and utterly helpless to do anything about it.

Mickey joined him briefly.

"You got a gun, mate? Or any sort of weapon?"

"Of course not! Why would I need a bloody gun down here?"

Mickey smiled unpleasantly.

"Just checking. I'd hate to have to shoot a scientist."

"What...?"

He didn't give Singh a second glance as he stepped forward and, in a swift and sure move, pushed the barrel of the gun up against the back of Spence's head. The other man froze.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Neutralising a nutjob," Mickey answered. "Put your gun down and move away from the computer."

"Who are you?" Spence demanded to know. "You're not Torchwood."

"The name's Mickey Smith. And I am Torchwood. Just not this Torchwood. Now, do as I say, please."

For several seconds, Spence stood frozen. Then, with a snarl, he thumped the gun down on the desk and stepped away as ordered.

"Smart man," Mickey retorted. "Now, on your knees."

"Going to execute me, are you?"

Spence sounded nonchalant, but there was an undercurrent of fear in his voice as he spoke.

"It's no less than you deserve," Gage said, coming over. "We know what you did to Tomas, you bastard."

Spence sneered at Gage.

"Poor little Tomas. Died begging like a coward..."

Spence's head rocked violently to the side as Gage struck him hard.

"Shut up," Gage snarled. "We know exactly how he died, and it wasn't begging or crying. He died with honour, and that's more than we'll ever say about you. Now, on your knees!"

"Or what?" Spence hissed. A cold smile spread across Gage's face.

"Or maybe we'll give Jack a chance to get even for every time you've ever hurt him. What d'you say, Doc? Ready to take a bit of payback?"

And right there, for the first time, visible fear lit up Spence's face.

"You keep that freak away from me, Adams! I'm warning you..."

"No, we're warning you. On your damn knees, or we'll let Jack do what he likes to you."

Spence sank to his knees without further protest, although the sullen resentment never left his face.

"Now, you just stay right there, and don't move," Mickey warned him.

"So what do we do now, then?" Gage wondered. Rose joined them, eyeing Spence with disdain.

"We get this one secured, and then we get Jack and Ianto into the TARDIS. Then I can find the Doctor and Mum, and we can get out of here."

Mickey stared at her with a frown.

"That's the only reason you're here? Because of Captain Cheesecake over there?"

Rose thumped him none-too-gently on the arm.

"Don't call him that! And yes, he's why we're here. Wait... Why _are_ you here? _How_ are you here?"

Mickey lifted a large disc on a chain from underneath his jacket.

"Dimension jump. Can only carry one, though, so I can't get you out of here."

"Doesn't matter. I'm not going anywhere without Jack, and I don't think he's going anywhere without Ianto."

Mickey glanced over at the two of them, still huddled together in the corner of the room. Jack remained curled up against Ianto, who appeared to be talking to him quietly. Neither appeared immediately concerned with what was going on around them.

"What happened to him, anyway? I thought you said he was killed fightin' them Daleks."

A shadow cross Rose's face.

"Turned out he wasn't."

There was silence as Mickey turned that over in his mind.

"You left him behind, didn't you? Bloody hell, Rose..."

Rose bristled at his tone, and reacted defensively.

"What do you care about it? You never even liked Jack!"

"No, maybe I didn't," Mickey conceded. "Bit too much flash, if you ask me. But that doesn't matter now, and it doesn't mean I think it's right, either. Was it like that Adam bloke you told me about? He do something the Doctor didn't like, so you decided to ditch him?"

Rose did a double-take, trying to work out how they had reached this point, with Mickey speaking on Jack's behalf. Given how the two had clashed when they first met, it was surreal to say the least.

"It's complicated, Mickey. Just leave it, all right?"

Throughout the conversation, Spence had watched the two of them like hawks, and now his gaze came to rest on Rose.

"You knew the freak."

Rose rounded on him angrily.

"Don't call him that! His name is Jack! Captain Jack Harkness!"

Spence sneered.

"Captain? Of what? That freak couldn't captain a paper boat."

"That's Torchwood's fault, you slimy bastard," Gage said angrily. "After a hundred and six years of being treated like a wild animal, what else do you expect?"

"Everything Jack has done would make you weep," Rose told Spence coldly. "He's a hero."

Spence snorted.

"He's unnatural, and he shouldn't exist."

All present winced at the sound of flesh striking flesh as Rose slapped Spence hard enough across the face to raise a blistering red welt on his cheek. He stared up at her in shock for a moment before hatred filled his face.

"You fucking little bitch, you'll pay for that. You're all going to pay for this! When Yvonne gets down here, you won't know what hit you. You're all going to die, and I'm going to be the one to pull the fucking trigger. And then we'll lock the freak up in the darkest, tiniest little hole we can find, and he'll never..."

Anything else Spence had planned on saying was lost as Ianto suddenly appeared behind him and struck him across the back of the head with the butt of Spence's own gun, knocking him out cold.

"Nice one, Ianto," Gage said approvingly. Ianto handed him the gun, unwilling to continue holding it himself.

"Just wanted to shut him up. He was upsetting Jack."

Mickey rolled his eyes.

"Wouldn't want that, would we?"

"Shut up," Rose growled. "Don't be a prat. You can see he's not the same as he was when you met him in Cardiff."

Mickey's expression softened as he watched Jack huddling in the corner and watching them with wide, frightened eyes.

"Yeah," he admitted softly. "I can see that."

Ianto looked between the two of them, acutely aware that there were two people present who were both capable of giving him a real insight into Jack's character, pre-Torchwood. He had a thousand questions he wanted to ask them, but right at that moment he could only find the voice for one.

"What did you call him before, Rose? Captain...?"

"Captain Jack Harkness," Rose answered with a small, sad smile. "That's how he introduced himself when I first met him. The Doctor made a joke about him bein' defrocked, and... Well, I won't go into that now. But yeah, that's the name he gave us. That's what we called him. Well, I called him Jack. The Doctor sometimes called him Jack, sometimes 'Captain'." She looked pointedly at Mickey. "He wasn't like Adam. He fitted in on the TARDIS. The Doctor was even teaching him to fly her by the end. The Doctor cared about Jack..."

"Cared about him enough to leave him behind on a dead satellite," Mickey cut in softly. "Hope he never cares that much about you, Rose."

Rose flinched, but she had nothing to say to that. Grimacing a little, Ianto turned his attention to Jack.

"Jack, come over here," Ianto called to him, and Jack got up and padded over to the group. He stepped into Ianto's outstretched arms without hesitation, and hummed contentedly when Ianto hugged him close.

"Jack, do you remember Mickey? You do, don't you?" Rose asked. Ianto winced. He recalled all too vividly the last memory involving Mickey, and braced himself for yet another embarrassing outburst. Jack didn't disappoint.

"Mickey the idiot!"

Rose and Ianto both reddened, while Mickey rolled his eyes.

"Hasn't changed that much, has he?"

"Sorry," Ianto apologised. "He doesn't understand that he's being insulting. He just doesn't have any concept of that at the moment."

Finally, a crooked grin broke across Mickey's face.

"Hey, it's okay. Means he at least remembers me, right?"

"That's true," Gage agreed. Mickey grinned broadly at Jack, who smiled back tentatively.

"Don't you worry, Captain Cheesecake. We'll get you safely to the TARDIS. Mickey Smith is on the job now."

"Yan too?" Jack asked, and Mickey nodded.

"Yan too."

Jack grinned in satisfied delight, but as Mickey started to turn away, Jack reached out and prodded him.

"Yeah?" Mickey asked. "What is it?"

"I'm Jack," Jack said firmly. Mickey glanced at Ianto quizzically before nodding.

"Yeah, mate. I know that."

"Not a cheesecake."

Gage turned away quickly, but not quickly enough to stifle a snort of amusement. Rose didn't even try to hide a giggle, while Ianto rolled his eyes in fond exasperation.

"He knows that, Jack," Ianto reassured him. "But him calling you that is a little like when I call you cariad. It's a nickname, that's all. It's just teasing."

Jack's brow furrowed as he tried to understand.

"He's teasing me?"

"Yes, but he doesn't mean to be nasty," Ianto reassured him. "Isn't that right, Mickey?"

"Yeah, that's right," Mickey agreed. "Absolutely. We're mates, aren't we, Jack?"

Jack nodded slowly, though his expression suggested he was less than certain. As Ianto led Jack over to sit down on a nearby chair, Mickey turned to Gage and Rose.

"How long's he been here?"

"Around a hundred and six years," Gage said sadly. "He was captured by Torchwood in Cardiff in 1899. They started the process of dehumanising him, and Torchwood London completed it. It's only because of Ianto that he's gotten this far."

"It's like he's only five years old, or something," Mickey murmured.

"At the moment? Pretty much," Gage confirmed.

"Bet your precious Doctor never thought he'd have to face a consequence like this, huh?" Mickey said abruptly to Rose. "Left Jack behind and never looked back, I'll wager. And while you and he were swanning about the universe together, Jack was right here, locked up like an animal."

"Mickey, stop it," Rose whispered. He had no intention of stopping, though.

"Look at him, Rose! The bloke I met in Cardiff was a pain in the arse, but at least he had all of his faculties! This guy is half a loaf short of a picnic! And your ruddy Time Lord is to blame!"

"I thought he was dead!" Rose choked out. She and Mickey were so caught up in their argument that neither was aware that Jack, who had been idly spinning himself around on the chair, was now staring at them with wide eyes.

"He told you that, yeah?" Mickey asked.

"Not at first, but eventually, yeah."

"And you think he really believed it?"

By that time, Rose was looking distinctly uncomfortable."

"Well... I thought he did..."

Mickey huffed angrily.

"But now you know differently, don't you?"

"Mickey, please stop..."

"No, Rose. He doesn't deserve to have you defending him. Not this time. He calls himself a Time Lord, and _you're_ the one who bragged to me that he can see all of time. Okay, so maybe he didn't know Jack was here, but I don't believe for a second that he thought Jack was dead. He knew, Rose. He knew, and he left him behind on purpose."

Rose had no argument for that, knowing full well that Mickey was right. The Doctor, after all, had admitted as much back in her mother's apartment that very morning. She was still trying to work out what she could say that might possibly help when a soft cough alerted them to Ianto's presence. He looked unimpressed, to say the very least.

"If you don't mind, could you please stop? Jack's maturity may not be up to par with the rest of us, but he's not a fool. He can understand you, and I'd prefer it if you didn't upset him so badly that he won't want to set foot inside the Doctor's ship."

Both Rose and Mickey looked, and sure enough, Jack was watching them with tear-filled eyes.

"And just so you know," Ianto added in a low voice, "he does remember being left behind by the Doctor."

"Oh god," Rose whimpered. She walked quickly over to Jack and gently took his hands in hers. "Listen to me, Jack. I swear to you, you won't be left behind again. I promise. Not by Yan, not by me and not by the Doctor."  
Jack stared at her long and hard for several seconds before smiling innocently at her.

"Okay."

Rose blinked in surprise and looked to Ianto in confusion as Jack went back to spinning himself around in circles on the chair.

"He trusts you," Ianto said with a shrug. "You've made him a promise, and he doesn't have any reason not to believe you. Please, Rose. Don't give him a reason."

"I won't," she swore, both to Ianto and to herself.

"Listen, shouldn't we get going?" Gage asked. "Yvonne said she was coming down here after the next ghost shift, and that's due to start any minute. Personally, I'd like to be somewhere else when she arrives."

Ianto started to agree when Singh, who had been very quiet up until that point, uttered a startled yelp.

"What's the matter with you?" Mickey demanded.

"The sphere!" Singh exclaimed in a tone that was borderline hysterical, with a combination of fear and excitement. "It's active! Oh my god, it's active! It's registering off the scale! Height, mass, weight... Everything!"

Mickey's expression hardened. Ignoring Singh, who had turned the computer link back on and was shrieking at the screen in a state of panic, he urged Rose, Gage, Ianto and Jack towards the back of the room.

"Mickey, what's going on?" Rose asked, her eyes fixed onto the sphere.

"Don't worry, Rose. I can handle this. We're ready for 'em this time."

"What? Ready for who?"

"The Cybermen! Why do you think I'm here? We had the Cybermen all rounded up, see, but then they disappeared. They found a way to get through to this world, and we followed 'em. Now, stay back, all of you, and let me do what I came here to do."

Rose didn't argue further. Instead, she gazed up at the sphere fearfully with the others, and watched as it slowly began to open.

* * *

_to be continued..._


	24. War

Mickey whole-heartedly believed that it would be Cybermen to emerge from the sphere, and Rose watched fearfully for the same, seeing no reason to doubt him. So when the sphere opened and four Daleks emerged, Rose honestly thought she was about to have a heart attack. Any reaction she was having, though, was immediately overshadowed by a terrified scream from Jack behind her, followed by a loud grunt and the sounds of a struggle.

As little as she dared to take her eyes from the monsters in front of her, she couldn't resist a quick look behind her.

Jack was struggling with Ianto, and it took Rose a moment to realise that Jack was, in fact, trying to force Ianto to stand behind him. His gestures were sloppy and panicked, though, and Ianto was too distracted by the creatures emerging from the sphere to really pay attention.

"Hide," Jack whimpered, tugging desperately on Ianto's arm. "Hide, Yan!"

"We can't," Ianto hissed. "There's nowhere to hide."

Even so, Jack continued pulling on Ianto's arm, and his face was the epitome of terror.

The Daleks alighted on the floor, and immediately glided towards them, grating metallic voices screeching at them from within their metal shells.

"Exterminate! Exterminate! Exterminate!"

Ianto shut his eyes and wrapped his arms around Jack as tightly as he could, bracing himself for an attack.

"Daleks!"

Rose's voice reverberated powerfully throughout the entire room, silencing the Daleks and stopping them in their tracks. Ianto dared to look, and saw the young woman advancing bravely on the monsters, discarding her stolen lab coat as she went.

"You're Daleks. Now, how would I know that? Me, a human. And I know about the Time War. Now, if you wanna know how I know, then all I ask is that you keep me and my friends… all my friends alive. Yeah?"

The black Dalek stared at her silently for several seconds before speaking ominously.

"You will be necessary."

* * *

"Necessary?" Gage hissed. "Necessary for what? What the hell are those things?"

"Daleks," Rose answered as she, Mickey and Singh retreated back to stand with Jack, Ianto and Gage. "They're Daleks. They're what killed Jack that very first time."

"Oh my god," Ianto moaned, and tightened his grip on Jack yet again in response. "We have to get out of here, now!"

"Too late," Rose whispered as the Daleks glided towards them once more, and encircled them. She was quietly relieved that Ianto seemed to have Jack under some modicum of control, and hoped fervently that it lasted. She dreaded to think what would happen if Jack bolted in a panic, and was shot down by the Daleks. She didn't want to contemplate what the metal monsters would do upon discovering they had an immortal human in their midst.

On the other hand, she wasn't sure whether to feel concern that Spence was beginning to stir nearby.

"Which of you is the least important?" one of the Daleks demanded.

"What do you mean?" Mickey asked with a frown.

"Choose the least important," the Dalek ordered shrilly.

"No, sorry, we don't operate like that," Rose told them, disgust evident in her voice. She was not the least bit surprised, though, that the Dalek would not be dissuaded.

"Choose the least important!"

Singh looked around, and his gaze alighted on Jack, who was cowering beside Ianto. In a second, Ianto realised what Singh was thinking, and he focused a threatening glare on the researcher.

"Don't you fucking dare!"

"Be reasonable, Jones," Singh begged. "At least with him, whatever they do won't be permanent."

"We can't know that for sure," Gage argued. "Especially if these are the things that killed him the first time. They might just be what can kill him permanently!"

"Well, better him than us!" Singh exploded. He started to turn towards the Daleks, only to be brought up short when Ianto grabbed him forcefully by the arm.

"You sacrifice Jack now, you bloody bastard, and I will break your neck. Do you hear me?"

Singh turned grey at the promise and fell silent, though resentment remained in his eyes. At that moment, as they were trapped in a stalemate, Spence suddenly scrambled clumsily to his feet and bolted for the door.

It happened faster than any of them were capable of reacting. One of the Daleks swung around smoothly and with a cry of 'Exterminate!' fired at the fleeing man. For a brief moment, Spence was engulfed in a blue and white light, and an agonised scream rent the air. Then, Spence collapsed to the ground, dead.

"Good riddance," Gage muttered, not the least bit remorseful to see Spence dead. He was, however, somewhat regretful that the bastard hadn't suffered for longer.

The Dalek turned back to them, and repeated its demand.

"You will choose, or we will choose for you."

Gage looked at Ianto, grief and distress in his eyes. Ianto realised what he meant to do, and spoke in a panic.

"Gage, no, you can't!"

"It's okay, Ianto. Just… take care of Jack, okay?"

Jack uttered a wordless cry as Gage began to step away from them, and reached out to snag his jacket in fear. Gage smiled bravely at him, and gently tried to disengage himself from Jack's grasp. Before he had the chance to put himself forward, though, Singh did so instead.

"Leave them alone. Take me, I'm the least important here." He glanced back at Ianto, apology in his eyes which Ianto accepted with a slight nod of acknowledgement.

Then, the Daleks were demanding that he kneel down, and the remaining four could only look on in helpless horror as Singh died in agony, the Daleks draining the knowledge they wanted from his skull like juice from an orange. Information acquired, the Daleks turned back to the Ark that they had brought out of the sphere with them, temporarily leaving their captives alone.

Jack collapsed to the floor, crying helplessly with fear, and Ianto quickly sat down beside him, murmuring pointless words of comfort.

"Hell of a difference from the bloke that tried to order the Doctor around in Cardiff," Mickey remarked in an unimpressed tone. "Not gonna be much use to us now if all he can do is just sit there and cry."

Ianto glared up at him.

"Go to hell. He's got the mentality of a child, and he's frightened. He doesn't have any other way of dealing with this."

"He's okay," Rose said decisively, ignoring Mickey's sceptical frown. "He's doesn't have to do anything except let us take care of him."

"Thankyou," Ianto whispered gratefully. "But what do we do? Making a run for it isn't really an option, is it?"

"No," Rose confirmed grimly. "Even if we could get the door open quickly, the Daleks are too fast. They'd take us all down before we even reached the door. You saw what happened to that other bloke."

"Spence," Gage murmured. "No big loss there, trust me."

"All human life is worthwhile," Rose countered, tension in her voice. Gage shook his head.

"Not Spence. Believe me, Miss Tyler. This world is much better off without the likes of him around. And if Jack could find a way to say so, he'd tell you the same."

"Yeah, well, I'm not so sure about that," Rose said. "But now's not the time to be fighting about it, either. Now, we just have to wait."

"Wait for what?" Gage asked, starting to sound impatient.

"For the Doctor," Rose answered, and Gage snorted softly in derision.

"Are we talking about the same Doctor who ditched Jack in the first place? Because if we are…"

Rose didn't respond. She desperately wanted to defend the Doctor, but for the first time that she could remember, she wasn't able to do so. Even as she tried to formulate an argument in her own mind to counter Gage's negativity, she recalled just that morning when her mother had demanded to know whether the Doctor would have ever gone back to Satellite Five for Jack. She remembered his reply with a shudder — a straight, unfettered 'no'. He had left Jack behind on purpose, with no intention of ever going back for him. There was no defending that.

"Something's happening," Mickey said suddenly, drawing their attention away from the stalemate. Sure enough, one of the Daleks had gone out into the corridor, and the remaining Daleks had opened a communication link with the one outside, using the wall to project an image. After a moment, they could all see what the lone Dalek was seeing.

"Oh god," Rose whispered in horror. "Daleks and Cybermen?"

"This is Hartman's doing, damn her," Gage growled. "That bloody psychotic bitch is going to get all of us killed."

"What are Cybermen?" Ianto asked, both frightened and intrigued by the metal monstrosities facing off with the Dalek. "Are they robots?"

"Not robots," Rose answered. "Well, not completely. They're humans. Human brains implanted into a cybernetic shell. Humans upgraded, to remove emotion. The Daleks are an alien race. They're the main enemy of the Doctor's people… but they shouldn't be here! The Daleks were all destroyed!"

"Apparently they weren't," Mickey pointed out unnecessarily. Rose shook her head, but anything she'd been planning to say was lost when her mobile phone began to vibrate in her pocket. Keeping a close watch on the Daleks as they argued and traded insults with the Cybermen, Rose discreetly pressed the appropriate button on her phone to connect the call.

"What are you doing?" Mickey asked in a whisper.

"My phone was ringing. It was Mum. She's with the Doctor, so she must be okay for now."

"Good. We can just keep worrying about us, then."

"I think we might have a bit more than that to worry about," Ianto spoke up. "We still don't know what that thing is."

Their collective gaze went to the strange-looking metal casket that the Daleks called the Genesis Ark. None of them knew what it was; only that the Daleks were hell bent on guarding it and that, in itself, made Rose intensely afraid of it.

"I wish I knew," she murmured. "But I've never seen anything like it before."

"Hang on, what's going on now…?" Gage interrupted.

They returned their attention to the viewing screen that was lit up against the wall, just in time to see the Dalek in the corridor exterminate the two Cybermen.

"This is war," the Cyber-leader announced.

"It is pest control," Dalek Sec responded.

"There are five million Cybermen. You would defeat us with only four Daleks?"

"We would defeat you with only one Dalek. However, there is one thing at which you are superior."

"And what is that?"

"Dying."

"Bloody hell," Mickey whispered as the transmission ended and the Dalek in the corridor returned. "Daleks and Cybermen, and we're stuck right in the middle. Speakin' of which, why haven't they just killed us? Not that I'm complainin', mind you."

"Didn't you hear before?" Rose asked. "They need us. Something to do with that thing. They need time travellers."

"So you, me and Captain Cheesecake…" He faltered at the dark look that Rose gave him. "Sorry. Jack. So, where does that leave those other two?"

Rose looked to Gage and Ianto worriedly. The same concern had crossed her mind also.

"I don't know. I really don't know."

* * *

Ianto cradled Jack to him, doing his best to comfort the older man and calm his fears. All the while, he kept an eye on the Daleks, ready to defend Jack should the Daleks turn their focus onto him. Right at that moment, though, their attention appeared to be on the Ark, and not their human prisoners.

"Hey, how's he doing?" Gage asked, sitting down beside them.

"As good as can be expected," Ianto murmured. "But he's frightened, and it doesn't help that he's one step shy of freezing. I wish I had some clothes to put on him."

"Another of Hartman's brilliant ideas," Gage muttered as he eyed Jack's near-naked form. "Subjugation through debasement. The stupid cow. Is it wrong that I'm hoping she's been killed?"

"Well, if you're going to hell for hoping that, then so am I," Ianto admitted. He glanced around and spotted Rose and Mickey a short distance away, talking quietly. He couldn't hear what they were saying; only snatches of whispered conversation.

Ianto had admit, he was far more impressed with Rose than he had expected to be. Whilst he still saw her as being at least partially responsible for Jack's circumstances, he had to concede that it took a brave person to do what she had done, and stand up to the Daleks. When the rest of them had been paralysed with fear, she had faced the metal terrors down and saved them from imminent death.

Now, though, they seemed to be caught in a dreadful waiting game, not knowing what was going to happen next.

"Yan toe," Jack whispered, drawing both his and Gage's attention.

"What is it?" Ianto asked, stroking his thumb soothingly down the side of Jack's face.

"I love you."

Ianto sighed, and brushed a kiss softly across Jack's forehead.

"I love you too, Jack."

Jack stared up at him tearfully.

"Please don't die."

Gage grimaced at the seemingly tactless statement, but Ianto understood it for what it was — just another variation on the 'please don't leave' plea. As simplistic and innocent as Jack's thought process was right then, he still understood that Ianto dying would mean losing him forever. It was a possibility that Jack apparently was not willing to deal with.

"I'm going to try my best, love," Ianto murmured. "I promise."

All three of them were startled when one of the Daleks spoke, apparently in response to something either Mickey or Rose had said.

"The technology is stolen. The Ark is not of Dalek design."

Rose frowned, confused.

"Then who built it?"

"The Time Lords," Dalek Sec replied. "This is all that remains of their home world."

"But what's inside?" Rose pressed.

Where they sat huddled together, Ianto wanted to yell at her to shut up and stop drawing attention to them all. He wondered numbly how she could appear so fearless in front of these metal monsters.

"The future," the Dalek said in answer to Rose's question. It abruptly reversed away from the Ark. "Final stage of awakening! Your handprint will open the Ark."

And suddenly, Rose radiated defiance.

"Well tough, 'cause I'm not doing."

One of the Daleks swung around smoothly to face Jack, Ianto and Gage.

"Obey, or the males will die."

Ianto grunted as Jack almost squashed the air out of him, trying to put himself between the Dalek and his friends.

"Jack…"

"No," Jack sobbed in borderline hysteria. "Won't let them hurt you! Won't let them take you away from me!"

Whether Jack's reaction was a factor in Rose's decision, none of them knew for sure because she had already started moving towards the Ark.

"Rose, don't!" Mickey shouted, but she shook her head.

"I can't let them."

"Place your hand on the casket," Dalek Sec ordered her. Rose made a show of reaching towards the Ark before suddenly stopping and turning back to the Dalek.

"If you escaped the Time War, don't you want to know what happened?"

For a hulk of metal that was supposedly devoid of emotion, the Dalek was growing visibly impatient.

"Place your hand…"

"What happened to the Emperor?" Rose cut in, and there was a heartbeat of silence as the Dalek processed what she'd said.

"The Emperor survived?"

"Until he met me," Rose answered with a casual arrogance that had Mickey smirking, and Ianto and Gage cringing. "'Cause if these are gonna be my last words, then you're gonna listen. I met the Emperor. And I took the Time Vortex and poured it into his head and turned him into dust. Do you get that? The god of all Daleks, and I destroyed him."

"She's out of her bloody mind," Gage whispered as Rose laughed right into the Dalek's face. "It's going to kill her for sure."

"She's trying to stall," Ianto muttered, trying to encourage Jack to shift enough so that he could see what was happening.

"She's going to get killed," Gage insisted, and sure enough, the Dalek finally reacted with a predictable cry that was laced with a very human rage.

"You will be exterminated!"

"Oh now, hold on, wait a minute…"

All eyes, human and Dalek alike, turned towards the owner of the voice, and Ianto couldn't help but gape. Standing in the doorway — and how or when it had been opened, he had no idea — was possibly the lankiest man he'd ever laid eyes on. The newcomer wore a brown pinstriped suit that was just slightly ill-fitted, but what really got Ianto's attention were the novelty 3-D glasses that he was wearing. It was a bizarre entrance, to say the least, and yet Ianto saw immediately that Rose and Mickey were both relieved to see him.

"Alert!" one of the Daleks shrieked. "Alert! You are the Doctor!"

"Sensors report he is unarmed."

The Doctor grinned like he'd just walked into a pub full of old mates.

"That's me. Always."

"Then you are powerless," Dalek Sec intoned. Again, the Doctor just grinned.

"Not me. Never!"

"Now he's mad," Ianto whispered, shaking his head in disbelief.

The Doctor's gaze swept around the room, and quickly came to rest on the three of them. For a split second, Ianto thought he saw the Doctor flinch, but then it was gone. Stepping confidently past the Daleks, he approached them and crouched down in front of them.

"You must be the famous Mr Jones," he said. "I hear you've been taking good care of my companion here." Without waiting for an answer, the Doctor turned towards Jack and his manic grin faded into a more sombre expression. "Hello again, Jack. Do you remember me? Do you know who I am?"

Jack didn't answer. He just stared at the Doctor with wide eyes. Tentatively, the Doctor lifted a hand and reached out to Jack. The young immortal uttered a frightened whimper and cringed away from him, seeking comfort that Ianto willingly gave. Grief flickered in the Doctor's eyes as he withdrew his hand. Jack's reaction gave him a tiny glimpse of the damage that had been done, and it just about broke his hearts.

"I am so sorry," he murmured, wanting to weep for his traumatised friend. Then, abruptly, he was on his feet again and walking back over to Rose and Mickey.

"How are you?" he asked Rose, and though he was smiling, she couldn't help but notice that the smile no longer reached his eyes. She couldn't blame him. After seeing Jack again for the first time since Satellite Five, she'd felt much the same.

"Oh, you know," she answered, keeping her answer flippant to try and hide her own distress. "Same old."

The Doctor gave the tiniest of nods in acknowledgement, and then turned his attention to Mickey.

"And Mick-Mickety-Mick-Mickey! Nice to see you!"

Mickey grinned back.

"And you, boss."

"Social interactions will cease!" Dalek Sec ordered, sounding somewhat bizarrely like an overbearing headmaster. "How did you survive the Time War?"

"By fighting on the front line," the Doctor answered, suddenly the picture of seriousness. "I was there at the fall of Arcadia. Some day I might even come to terms with that. But you lot… ran away!"

"God, I wish he wouldn't taunt them," Gage moaned.

"I think he knows what he's doing," Ianto murmured, but Gage snorted.

"Like hell, Ianto. You don't know that anymore than I do."

"Gage, with all respect, shut up. We have to trust him. We don't have any other choice."

Gage grimaced, but his silence told Ianto better than any words that he agreed, however reluctantly. The Daleks suddenly spoke again, the harsh, metallic voices jolting Ianto and Gage back into awareness of what was happening right in front of them.

"I am Dalek Thay."

"Dalek Sec."

"Dalek Jast."

"Dalek Caan."

And with that, fresh realisation dawned on the Doctor's face. At a glance, he seemed amused and jovial, but Ianto thought he saw something more than that in the Doctor's eyes. He thought he could see fear.

"So that's it. At last. The Cult of Skaro. I thought you were just a legend."

"Who are they?" Rose asked.

"A secret order," the Doctor explained, eying Dalek Sec like it was a particularly interesting bug. "Above and beyond the Emperor himself. Their job was to imagine. Think as the enemy thinks. Even dare to have names, all to find new ways of killing."

"That thing," Rose said with a renewed urgency. "They said it was yours. I mean Time Lords, they built it."

"What does it do?" Mickey asked, but the Doctor shrugged.

"I don't know. Never seen it before."

"But it's Time Lord," Rose protested. Again, the Doctor shrugged.

"Both sides had secrets." He looked around at the Daleks, speaking as though they were naughty children in need of chastising. "What is it? What have you done?"

"Time Lord science will restore Dalek supremacy," Sec replied cryptically. By then, all signs of humour and amusement were gone from the Doctor's face.

"What does that mean? 'Time Lord science'? What do you mean?"

"They said one touch from a time traveller will wake it up," Rose told him, and the Doctor's face practically lit up with devious glee at her revelation.

"Ah, technology using the one thing a Dalek can't do. Touch. There you are, sealed inside your casing, not feeling anything, ever. From birth to death, locked inside a cold metal cage. That explains your voice. No wonder you scream."

As the Doctor's words washed over them, Ianto realised that Jack's tremors were beginning to get worse, and that he had begun to cry and whimper in growing distress. He suspected that he knew why, too, even if Jack couldn't explain it himself. Whilst his words had been directed at the Daleks, the Doctor nevertheless had given a perfect description of Jack's life for the past hundred and six years. Jack understood, even if only at a very rudimentary level, and he was reacting accordingly.

"Hold on, cariad," Ianto whispered, trying desperately to draw Jack's attention away from the Doctor. "Look at me. Concentrate on me."

Slowly, Jack's eyes came to rest on Ianto, and some of the skittishness and panic dissipated, but the tremors remained. When the Daleks spoke again, though, demanding that the Doctor open the Ark, Jack very nearly leapt out of Ianto's embrace in fright. At a loss for what else to do, Ianto gently took hold of Jack's chin and leaned forward to kiss him. When he broke it seconds later, he was gratified to see that he finally had Jack's full attention.  
"Focus on me," Ianto told him again, studiously ignoring the war of words taking place between the Doctor and their Dalek captors. "I'll protect you, Jack. Trust me."

"No," Jack said hoarsely, and Ianto felt stung by the apparent rejection, although he supposed it was well deserved. Jack, however, pulled Ianto to him in a fierce, if somewhat clumsy hug.

"What…?" Ianto gasped in surprise. He felt Jack's lips on top of his head, and the older man's arms clutching him tightly. His face was slightly mashed into Jack's bare shoulder, muffling his startled exclamation.

"I'll protect you," Jack whispered tearfully. Ianto felt his heart melt, and his own arms found their way around Jack, returning the hug with interest.

"How about we try to protect each other?"

Jack sniffled miserably.

"Okay. Love you, Yan toe."

"I love you, too," Ianto whispered.

Gage smiled sadly at the innocent affection being displayed by Jack, but before he could make a comment, doors and walls suddenly exploded inwards, sending all three of them diving for cover.

There was smoke and dust, shouting and shooting, and through it all Ianto could hear Jack howling in terror. Even through his own fear, though, he was acutely aware of Jack trying desperately to shield not only him, but Gage as well. As frightened and confused as Jack was, his instinct was still to protect those he cared for.

Ianto tried to see what was happening through the dust, smoke and laser fire, but it was utter chaos, and he couldn't make out friend from foe. Then, suddenly, a face appeared barely inches in front of his own, and he yelped in fright. The Doctor reached out and grabbed his shoulder in a fierce grip.

"C'mon, Ianto Jones, shake a leg! You too, Jack. And your friend there, whatever his name is!"

Ianto scrambled to get up, and haul Jack right along with him.

"C'mon, Jack, run! Gage, help me!"

Between them, they half led, half dragged Jack through the battle and towards the door. They were just making their way past the Ark when a damaged Cyberman fell into them, knocked Jack away from Ianto and Gage and sent him stumbling into the casket. He landed against him squarely, and both Gage and Ianto winced at the sharp hiss as Jack's hand left a very clear imprint on the metal.

Jack yelled in pain and put up no resistance when Ianto grabbed his arm and propelled him out of the room.

"Ouch, Yan!" Jack wailed, holding his red, scorched hand up. "Ouch!"

"I know, love," Ianto acknowledged. "We'll see to it later, I promise. Just come quickly!"

"He activated that thing!" Mickey burst out. "He fell on it, and touched it, and he activated it! Nice going, Captain Cheesecake."

Ianto wanted to hit Mickey. Jack was frightened enough without suffering from the fear of thinking he'd done a bad thing.

"He couldn't help it! He was knocked into the bloody thing. Leave him alone, all right?"

The damage was done, though, and Jack spoke shakily.

"Yan toe? Was I bad?"

Ianto could see Jack bracing himself for a reprimand, but before he had a chance to speak any words of reassurance, the Doctor beat him to it. Stepping up close to his former companion, the Doctor spoke to Jack with absolute sincerity.

"Listen to me, Jack. It's all right. You didn't do anything wrong, I promise you. It's okay."

"But what about that thing…?" Mickey protested, but the Doctor silenced him with a hard look.

"Without us, the Daleks would have tried to open it by force, and they would have blown up the Sun to do it. Jack did us a favour. Now, leave him alone. He's scared and confused enough without us making it worse for him. C'mon, everyone. Run!"

As the rest of them took off down the corridor, Ianto grasped Jack's uninjured hand.

"Are you all right?"

Jack nodded, though the fresh tears in his eyes and the way his chest hitched with barely suppressed sobs suggested to Ianto that he was far from all right.

"It'll be over soon, I'm sure of it," Ianto promised him softly. "And then the Doctor will take us far away from here, and no one will ever be able to hurt you again. Just hang on a little longer, all right?"

Again Jack nodded, still too upset to speak.

"C'mon, boys," Gage said with a hint of urgency in his voice. "We're getting left behind. Better catch up quick."

Ianto nodded, and gently tugged on Jack's uninjured hand. With a little encouragement, Jack broke into a run alongside Ianto and Gage, and the three of them hurried after the Doctor and his companions.

* * *

They were surprised and a little disconcerted to find that the Doctor and the rest of the group had gotten some ways ahead of them. Ianto had a brief, frightening thought that they'd lost them, and could barely contain his relief upon rounding a corner and finding them just ahead.

"What the hell?" Gage muttered, but a wide grin broke across Ianto's face as he realised what had brought them to a halt.

"Jackie. It's Jackie, Rose's mother. She took care of Jack… Actually, she took care of both of us. Jack, look! See who it is?"

Jack looked, and a moment later the fear melted away from his face and he shouted in excitement.

"Jackie!"

Jackie had just finally extricated herself from Pete's arms when she heard the cry, and tears flooded her eyes as she spotted Jack and Ianto. Leaving Pete standing there in bemusement, she ran over and threw her arms first around Jack, and then Ianto, and then Jack again.

"You poor loves, I was worried sick! When I got home yesterday to find Ben on my doorstep with your blanket and dog, Jack… I damn near had a heart attack! Oh, come here, you."

She pulled Jack back into her arms once again.

"Wow," Rose said softly in amazement as she and the Doctor approached. "You really did take care of Jack, didn't you?"

"Told you I did," Jackie snapped. "Next time you might believe your mum."

"She did more than just look after us," Ianto said quietly, watching with a smile as Jack contentedly buried his face against Jackie's shoulder and clung to her tightly. "We owe her everything."

The Doctor smiled wistfully, lost briefly in the moment, before clapping his hands together loudly.

"All right, then, you lot. Let's keep moving!"

* * *

Gage expected the Doctor to want to head straight to his ship, and so he was a little confused when they seemed to be headed in the opposite direction.

"Where the hell are we going?" he asked breathlessly as they ran. "His ship is in Bay Four, and that's back that way."

"Don't know," Ianto answered, sounding equally breathless. "Whatever he's doing, though, I just hope it won't take too long. Jack's getting flighty."

A glance told Gage that Ianto was right. The euphoria of the reunion with Jackie Tyler had rapidly worn off, and now Jack seemed to one step shy of a panic attack. Gage grasped Jack's wrist, mindful of his burnt hand, and tried to offer some reassurance.

"Just stay with me and Ianto, Jack. You'll be okay, I promise."

He had no real way of knowing if Jack really believed that. The Doctor had suddenly stopped outside the doors of the main warehouse, where all alien tech was taken for registering and initial testing. It was the same warehouse that Yvonne Hartman had led the Doctor and Jackie through after meeting them outside the TARDIS.

The Time Lord pushed the doors open cautiously, and they all had to duck as they were bombarded with laser fire.

"What the hell is he doing?" Mickey asked of no one in particular as the Doctor darted into the room. They watched as he reached the first crate, and he was just reaching for the magnetic clamps inside when he appeared to spot something else entirely. Glancing around to ensure that neither Daleks nor Cybermen were paying him any attention, the Doctor scrambled across the floor to a large Perspex display box that sat innocuously by one wall.

"Now what's he doing?" Pete hissed.

"Don't know," Rose admitted. She looked around, and quickly found Gage and Ianto's eyes. "What's in that box over there?"

Ianto shrugged, but Gage answered.

"It's a display case. Every couple of months, something gets pulled out of Archives and put on display. Something that no one's been able to figure out yet. Sometimes someone will come along who wasn't around the first time the thing was displayed, and they might be able to work out what it's for. I don't know what's in there at the moment, though."

"Whatever it is, it's got the Doctor's attention," Rose said.

They all watched as he lifted the lid on the box, and snatched up whatever was inside. Whatever it was, none of them could see, and it quickly disappeared into the Doctor's pocket, well out of sight. Then, he went back for the clamps, and finally made it safely back out of the room.

"What'd you take from over there?" Rose asked in confusion. He didn't answer. Dropping the clamps, he put the 3-D glasses back on and risked another look back into the room.

The Cybermen were all dead, as were the humans who had been fighting alongside them. Only the four Daleks and their Ark remained, and even as the Doctor watched, they began to levitate the Ark upwards towards a newly-made hole in the ceiling.

"Up!" the Doctor burst out as he let the door swing shut. "We have to go back up to the top of the tower!"

And they were off again, heading towards the stairwell near where they'd found Jackie, until Jake Simmonds stuck his head out and called to them. They all piled into the elevator, but Jack pulled away, fresh fear in his eyes.

"Jack, c'mon," Ianto pleaded with him. He was acutely aware of the agitation of the others behind him, waiting to get moving. "Please, we have to go!"

"Where to?" Jack asked.

"Up, of course!" Jake snapped impatiently. "We've got to get to the very top, and you're holding us up! Now, get your arse in here, you bloody prat!"

When Jack still hesitated, though, Pete snorted loudly.

"We don't have the time for this. He's either coming or he's not."

"We're not leavin' him behind," Jackie snarled. "So don't even think about it!"

"We don't have time, Jacks!" Peter exploded. Angry and frustrated, and more than a little scared himself, Pete rounded on Jack. "You get yourself in here right now, you ruddy simpleton!"

He all-but roared at Jack, before either Ianto or Jackie had a chance to stop him. Jack flinched visibly in the face of Pete's anger and, with outright panic in his eyes, he turned on his heel and bolted away down the corridor.

"Jack!" Ianto shouted after him, but it was to no avail. Jack was already out of sight around the far corner. He looked towards the Doctor and the others helplessly, and Gage took a tentative step forward.

"Ianto…"

Shaking his head helplessly, Ianto took off after Jack.

"Bloody hell!" Pete burst out, but Jackie silenced him with a painful thump to the arm.

"Shut up, you!" she choked out. "Couldn't keep your mouth shut, could you! Had to go scarin' him!"

"I'll go after him," Gage said grimly. "You all go on and do what you need to do."

"Hold on, what's your name?" the Doctor asked, staring at Gage somewhat unnervingly through the red and blue cellophane lenses of his 3-D glasses.

"Gage, sir. Gage Adams."

"Right, Gage. I need you right here, with me. I'm going to need your help."

"But Jack and Ianto…"

Rose abruptly stepped out of the elevator and into the corridor.

"I'll find them. I can find them, and get them to the TARDIS, and then meet you up in the tower."

"No," the Doctor said quickly. "No, when you get them to the TARDIS, you stay in there with them. You'll all be safe in there. Promise me you'll stay in the TARDIS, Rose?"

"But what about you…?"

"I'll be fine," he promised her. "I swear to you."

Rose stared at the Doctor for several long seconds, frowning as she tried to work out what it was that he wasn't telling her. Finally, though, she gave up and, giving her mother a brave smile, turned and hurried away in the direction that Jack and Ianto had both gone.

"She'd better be okay, or I'll have your guts for garters, you hear me?" Jackie growled. The Doctor stared grimly at Jackie.

"Trust me, Jackie. She'll be a lot safer in the TARDIS than anywhere else in this building. Now, let's get moving. We need to see exactly what's inside that casket."

* * *

_to be continued...._


	25. An Unexpected Betrayal

Jack ran blindly, with no clear sense of direction. All he wanted was to get away from everyone who yelled at him, and called him names. He didn't know what a simpleton or a prat was, but he did understand that they were not nice things. In fact, he knew it was much the same as the Mickey person who kept calling him 'Cheesecake'.

The only person who he didn't mind calling him something other than his name was his Ianto.

When Ianto called him other things, there was no meanness in it, and the words sounded nice to Jack's ears. He didn't understand what words like cariad meant, but he did know that Ianto wasn't teasing him when he used them.

Jack rubbed at his eyes as he stumbled down a short flight of stairs. He was so tired of being teased, and of people being mean to him. For so long, he'd been told that he deserved it, but now he was finally starting to suspect that he'd been lied to. After all, Ianto had never teased him or been mean to him.

He grimaced. Well, except for that one time in Jackie's home, but he'd just been upset. They both had been.

Jack pushed that unpleasant memory aside with determination. Ianto loved him. He'd said so, and above and beyond anything else, Jack believed in his Ianto.

He rounded a corner, and then another, and another until he found himself in a dead end corridor. He started to head back the way he'd come when he heard a new sound – the sound of heavy, metallic footsteps. Jack didn't need to be smart like Ianto to know who those heavy footsteps belonged to. The metal men were coming, and his instincts screamed at him to hide.

Panicked, Jack backtracked a little to the last door that he'd passed, and slipped inside.

* * *

The room was dark, and after being in the overly-bright corridor it took him a moment to adjust. Once he had, he quickly realised that he wasn't alone. A pair of eyes met his in the darkness, equally wide and terrified, but also angry.

"Get out! This is my place to hide!"

It was a girl. Jack couldn't see her very clearly, but he could tell that much, at least. He stared down at her in confusion.

"But… there's room for me, too," he protested. He really did not want to go back outside when the scary metal men sounded so close. A moment later, he yelped and uttered a choked sob when she kicked at him, and the long, thin heel of her shoe sliced open the bare flesh of his leg.

"I said, get out! Whoever the hell you are, just get out!"

Jack was momentarily at a loss, and almost cried for missing Ianto. His Ianto would have known what to do, or to say. Not for the first time, he wished that he hadn't run off. Running off only ever seemed to get him into trouble. Suddenly, the woman groaned.

"Oh, bloody hell, just sit down then, would you? And keep quiet!"

Relieved, Jack plopped himself down onto the floor beside her. He noticed she was trembling as much as he was and wondered briefly whether she might like him to cuddle her. Some deeper instinct warned him against it, though, and so he kept his hands to himself and did his best to keep quiet. In the end, though, he just couldn't help himself.

"I'm Jack."

She glanced at him in irritation before sighing.

"Fine. I'm Lisa. Now, shut up!"

"I was bad," Jack confessed, ignoring her plea for quiet. "I ran away."

Lisa stared at him, her curiosity piqued. She wondered briefly whether this man was perhaps one of the mentally disabled workers from Packing. Maybe, she mused, he'd run off when the invasion started. If that was the case, then maybe he wasn't quite as mentally deficient as his colleagues.

"Who did you run away from?" she asked, giving in to her curiosity.

"Yan toe. He'll be mad at me. He doesn't like it when I run off. But I was scared, and they were all angry and yelling at me. I didn't want to stay with the angry people."

He didn't see the face that she pulled.

"No, I suppose you wouldn't. Sorry… are you talking about Ianto Jones?"

Jack hesitated. He had no concept of last names. He was just Jack, and Ianto was just Ianto.

"He looks after me," Jack said hesitantly, hoping that might be enough of an answer for her. Silence met his words, and then…

"Oh my god, you're him! You're the freak he was so bloody obsessed with!"

Jack flinched. A lot of words were still beyond him, but freak was one word that he knew all too well.

"I… I'm not a freak," he whispered. Beside him, Lisa patted his arm condescendingly.

"Of course you're not. And I'm the Queen of England."

Jack didn't respond. He didn't like her tone at all, even though he couldn't sense anything overly nasty in it. She went on, sounding more incredulous by the second.

"I still can't believe he kicked me out over you!"

"He… kicked you?" Jack asked in confusion. He couldn't conceive of his Ianto kicking anyone, even this not nice person beside him. She laughed unpleasantly.

"My god, you really are a dummy, aren't you?"

Jack's breath hitched, and he found himself struggling not to cry.

"Why are you mean?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Am I being mean? Well, maybe that's because I was going to marry Ianto, until he met you!"

"M… Marry?"

"That's right. Do you understand that word, dummy?"

Tears stung Jack's eyes. All of a sudden, he didn't want to be in there anymore. He wanted his Ianto, and he was wishing more than ever that he hadn't run off.

"Not a dummy," he protested miserably. Lisa snorted derisively.

"Sure. Anyway, marrying is what two people do when they love each other, and Ianto was going to marry me."

Jack frowned, still not comprehending the concept of marriage.

"Yan toe… wants to marry you…?"

"Yes. He loved me, you idiot."

"He loves me too," Jack argued, but she only laughed.

"He doesn't love you. He pities you. There's a big difference. Trust me."

A tear finally spilled from Jack's eyes and rolled down his cheek, soon followed by another, and another. It hurt more than he could describe to be told so bluntly that Ianto didn't love him after all, and he didn't want to believe it.

"But… he said so…"

"Probably to shut you up!" Lisa snapped. "God, do you understand the meaning of 'be quiet'?"

"I don't think I like you," Jack said abruptly in a tremulous voice. Again, she laughed at him.

"Well, then, it looks like we have something in common after all. Because I sure as hell don't like you."

Silence fell for a brief few seconds before she spoke again in a low hiss that had Jack physically recoiling from her.

"He doesn't love you. Not really. I'm the one he really loves, and when this is all over, I'll find him again and he'll remember. You can't have him. He doesn't want you."

Jack rubbed fiercely at his eyes. He didn't want to be seen crying in front of this nasty person and give her another reason to laugh at him. As he sat there, though, her words began to sank into his conscious mind. He didn't believe what she said about Ianto not wanting him or loving him – that was not what had him the most upset. What upset and ultimately frightened him was the realisation that she wanted to take his Ianto away from him.

He glanced at her in the darkness, suddenly seeing so much more in her features than her pretty, though sullen, features. All of a sudden, he saw in her everything that was cruel and bad about Torchwood. He saw Robin Spence and Yvonne Hartman, who tried to make him believe his Ianto was dead.

As he considered that, his sharp hearing picked up a sound – the sound of metal boots on the floor. The Cybermen were there, and it sounded like they were right on the other side of the door.

At that moment, consumed with fear that the nasty lady might actually succeed in taking his Ianto away him, Jack did the only thing he could think of to stop her. He lunged at the door and almost fell through it in his haste to get it open.

"What are you doing?" Lisa hissed in horror and panic. "Stop!"

It was too late, though. The unit of Cybermen that had just turned to head back up the corridor turned back to them abruptly, and the first on spoke directly to Jack.

"Do you surrender?"

Jack was momentarily frozen with fear before finally finding his voice.

"Yes…. We do…"

"We?" Lisa choked out, and tried to crawl further back into the darkness of the room. "What do you mean 'we', freak?"

Tremulously, Jack pointed into the room. On a deeper level, he knew he was doing something very bad, something that his Ianto might truly be angry with him for, but he was desperate to keep Ianto from being taken from him by her. In his simplistic reasoning, letting the Cybermen take both him and the nasty lady might mean going into the dark place again for a while, but he would come back. The nasty lady wouldn't, and then Ianto wouldn't have any reason to leave him behind.

With that singular thought on his mind, Jack gave Lisa up to the Cybermen.

* * *

Ianto was angry. There was no doubt about that. Had anyone actually asked him, though, he would have been hard pressed to say who he was angrier at – Jack, or the callous sods who had yelled at him. In the end, his anger was directed more towards the strangers who were helping the Doctor. He didn't know who they were, except that the one called Pete seemed to have some sort of connection to Jackie. Whatever the connection, though, whether it was to Jackie, or Rose or the Doctor, they had no right to behave in that way towards Jack.

He clenched his jaw as he ran. Oh, he was mad at Jack, too, make no mistake about that. After what had happened the last time that Jack had run off on him, he'd thought that Jack would have known better and thought twice. It seemed that was not the case. Instead of trusting him to protect him, Jack had taken off in a panic, and was now God only knew where. All he hoped was that he could catch up with Jack before the situation became worse.

Ianto cursed softly, wondering yet again how someone who was so ungainly and clumsy in his movement could run so fast. Already Jack was out of sight, and Ianto could only hope that he was going the right way. Torchwood Tower was so damned big, it would be all too easy to get lost within its walls.

He wanted to call out to Jack, but he was terrified of drawing unwanted attention to himself. The last thing he needed was to have to deal with those Cybermen, or worse – the Daleks. And speaking of…

Ianto skidded on the floor a little in a desperate effort to stop. Just around the corner, he could hear the heavy, metallic sound of the Cybermen's footsteps. Heart in his throat, Ianto risked a glance around the corner and sure enough, there was a squad of Cybermen marching away down the corridor. He was about to follow them when a hand clamped squarely over his mouth and he was pulled back physically.

With a scream on his lips, Ianto twisted around, ready to fight for his life, but just as quickly all the fight bled out of him when he saw who was there.

"Rose?" he hissed in disbelief. "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" she retorted. "Come to help you find Jack, haven't I?"

"No, I meant why aren't you with the Doctor?"

Rose found herself battling an urge to punch Ianto somewhere sensitive.

"I swear, you blokes and your ruddy alpha male chauvinistic tendencies. I'm not his servant, and I don't always follow him 'round. He's gone up the tower to find out what the Daleks were tryin' to release, and I said I'd help you find Jack, and get you both to the TARDIS."

"How will we get in?"

"Got a key. Frequent flyer privilege, he calls it. You know, so I can be sure he won't leave me behind."

She knew it was the wrong thing to say the moment the words were out of her mouth. Slowly, Ianto turned back to stare at her grimly.

"I take it that Jack didn't qualify for that privilege, then?"

Rose felt more than a little queasy, but even though she suspected that it was only adding fuel to the fire, she spoke again.

"The Doctor gave Jack his own key. Said he proved himself when he saved me from this gang of space pirates. Jack was hurt pretty badly, but that didn't stop him from doing everything he could to keep me safe. The Doctor gave him a key to the TARDIS when he was still laid up sick in the med bay. Told him he'd proved he was bigger on the inside, and that he was welcome to stay as long as he wanted."

"Except, it didn't work out that way, did it?" Ianto said bitterly. "Tell me, Rose, exactly what did Jack do that made the Doctor abandon him?"

Rose had no chance to answer. Suddenly, one of the Cybermen spoke, the emotionless voice echoing off the walls.

"Do you surrender?"

"Y… Yes… We do."

Ianto's heart nearly stopped at the sound of Jack's voice, and he risked a look around the corner. He was just in time to see Jack point shakily into an open doorway. A Cyberman marched in, and a moment later…

"Oh god, Lisa…" Ianto whispered in horror as Lisa was dragged out, kicking and screaming and cursing Jack with every foul word she could think of.

"Back!" Rose hissed. "Get back! We have to hide!"

"I can't hide," Ianto argued, struggling to pull out of Rose's surprisingly strong grip. "I have to help them!"

"You aren't gonna be much help if you get upgraded, or killed," she snapped right back at him, and her blunt words jolted him back to reality. Sick with fear, he followed Rose into one of the small lab rooms. There they waited, watching through a tiny gap as the Cybermen marched past. Jack walked in their midst, crying and obviously terrified, but otherwise unforced. Lisa was being forcibly dragged by two Cybermen at the rear. She was begging for her life, and pleading with them to take Jack and leave her alone.

"Please!" Lisa screamed as she twisted uselessly in the Cybermen's grip. "He's all you need! He's some sort of freak, he can't die! Just take him, and leave me! Please!"

They paid her no heed, and Ianto and Rose emerged just as they vanished around the corner.

"That cow tried to sell Jack out!" Rose exclaimed indignantly. Ianto couldn't say he was especially surprised.

"She probably figured it was her chance to get even, and maybe even get Jack out of the picture," Ianto admitted. "Although, how she'd even know whether I'm still alive beats me."

Rose looked at him in confusion.

"What are you on about?"

"That woman. Her name is Lisa Hallet, and she used to be my girlfriend. In fact, if I hadn't taken the Secure Archives job… if I'd never met Jack… then we probably would have been engaged by now."

Rose's lips formed a silent 'O' in understanding.

"C'mon," Ianto said grimly. "We have to follow them."

* * *

"If you don't mind me asking," Rose said in a whisper as they followed the Cybermen, "exactly how did you find out that Jack was here? 'Cause Mum wasn't exactly clear on that point."

"I was promoted to Secure Archives," Ianto explained. "My job was to take care of Jack… although, back then it was a much different prospect."

"How d'you mean?"

"Well, you know those TV advertisements that you see about the black bears in captivity? The ones that are so badly abused and malnourished?"

Rose felt her stomach rolling.

"Yeah. What about them?"

"Well, that's about on par with how Jack was being treated. Basically, I was expected to feed him three times a day, hose him down and clean up the shit."

"Oh my god," Rose whimpered, horrified at the images those words put in her mind. Ianto nodded. He paused, waiting for the Cybermen to march around the next corner before venturing forward.

"When I saw Jack for the first time, he was chained up, half starved and horribly abused. He was more animal than human, and it took him nearly a month to start trusting me. Which, considering that he'd been treated inhumanely for the past hundred odd years, was actually rather impressive. But when I first met him, I think everyone else who knew about him only viewed him as a means of stress relief."

"And how do you see him?" Rose asked guardedly.

"As a man who needed help," Ianto answered without hesitation. "Bloody hell, where are they taking them?"

"They'll have a place set up where they're upgrading everyone. We have to get Jack away from them before they can do that to him."

"But whatever they do to Jack, his body will just reset," Ianto pointed out. A moment later he grunted in pain and annoyance when Rose punched him on the shoulder.

"Did you hear what I said earlier? The Cybermen take a person's brain and they put it in one of them metal suits. I don't think I want to test Jack's revival powers against that. Do you?"

"Duw," Ianto whispered as what she was trying to tell him finally sank in. "What do we do, then? We don't have any weapons that will have any effect against them."

"No," Rose murmured, "but my dad's team did. We need to find out where they're going, and then we have to get back to that big warehouse."

"The weapons," Ianto said hoarsely. "The Daleks killed everyone. Their weapons were useless against the Daleks, but they'll stop the Cybermen."

Rose nodded, and fresh determination lit up her eyes.

"Exactly! So we can save Jack, and hopefully a few others as well."

* * *

It was disturbingly easy to tell that they were getting close to the Cybermen's base of operations by the sounds of agonised screams, combined with a hideous whine and grind of metal that got louder with every step they took. Trying to ignore the horrific sounds, Ianto focused instead on their surroundings, and he soon realised where they were.

"The construction area," Ianto whispered, watching with dread as Jack and Lisa were herded down the corridor and forced to join a long queue of Torchwood employees, all of whom looked equally terrified. The room into which the queue of people led was all but belching sparks, steam and smoke, and the noise of machinery battled with the screams of dozens of unfortunate souls. "That area has been out of bounds for months! How long must they have had to prepare for this?"

"Don't waste time asking those sorts of questions," Rose warned him. "It's pointless. Now, c'mon! We need to get those guns before we can do anything to help Jack, or any of them."

Ianto followed her reluctantly, if only because he knew full well that to go after Jack without any sort of weaponry would be suicide. Acutely conscious of the time it was taking them, Ianto followed Rose back to the warehouse.

It was no longer a battleground, but rather a graveyard of human and Cyberman corpses. The Daleks were gone, leaving behind them absolute carnage.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Ianto mumbled as he looked around at the smouldering bodies.

"Save it," Rose ordered him grimly. Ianto watched numbly as she crossed to the nearest human corpse, and divested it of its weapon. Making an effort to suppress the urge to throw up, Ianto copied her actions and went to collect a weapon of his own. The gun he picked up was huge, and nothing like he'd ever seen before, and he found himself wondering if he was even capable of firing it. A glance at Rose, however, told him that she was perfectly confident handling the weapon, and his pride wouldn't allow him to confess that the technology had him bamboozled.

Apparently oblivious to Ianto's dilemma, Rose spoke as she hefted her gun over her shoulder.

"Now, when we go back there, don't hesitate. You hesitate, and you're dead. You get that, Ianto Jones?"

He nodded, all the while wondering if he looked as ill as he felt.

"I've never killed anything before," he admitted. "I'm not sure that I can."

He recalled briefly his rage towards Spence, and towards Branton and Bourke. He had thought once that he could easily have killed all three, but when presented with the opportunity earlier with Spence, he'd quickly discovered that he simply didn't have the stomach to take a life. Even telling himself that the Cybermen were no longer human didn't seem enough to give him courage to pull the trigger… even if he knew how.

Rose focused a piercing stare on him.

"Well, now's not the time to be second-guessing yourself. These things don't negotiate, they don't do sympathy and they don't show mercy. If they can't upgrade you, then they'll kill you."

Ianto tightened his grip on the gun in an effort to still the tremor in his hands. All of a sudden, the reality of the situation was hitting home, and he was suddenly and acutely conscious of how terrified he really was.

"This is a suicide mission, isn't it?" he asked hoarsely. "We're not going to survive this. We're going to die in here…"

He knew he was being melodramatic, and yet he couldn't keep the words from spilling out of his mouth. He was brought up short, though, by Rose.

"Oi! Don't make me slap you, Ianto!"

He cringed visibly, and Rose couldn't help but wonder just how many times he'd been on the receiving end of a Tyler slap. Suppressing a sudden urge to laugh, she went on in as stern a tone as she could manage.

"Now you listen to me, Ianto Jones. This is what we're going to do. We're going to take our really big guns, we're gonna go back and rescue Jack, and then we're gonna get to the TARDIS and wait for the Doctor. You got that?"

Ianto couldn't help but smile, and he knew then that he would willingly follow this feisty teenager into Hell. He hoisted the gun up, into a more comfortable grip, and nodded his head towards the door.

"Let's go get Jack."

And abruptly, the moment was spoiled seconds later when Rose's mobile phone rang.

"Oh, hang on, it's my mum," Rose said, fumbling to answer the call. Ianto rolled his eyes, but didn't object. From what little he'd seen, Cybermen had nothing on the wrath of Jackie Tyler, and he knew better than to risk it.

"Mum?" Rose spoke into the phone. "…No, not yet. I found Ianto, and we were just about to go and get Jack. …What do you mean, you're saying goodbye?"

Ianto started, feeling an icy rush through his body at her words and tone. Something was very definitely wrong. As he watched, Rose's face creased with distress, and tears welled up in her eyes.

"I don't understand! Put the Doctor on, now! ...Doctor, what's going on? What's Mum on about?"

Rose fell silent, and her expression shifted from distressed to sombre as she listened. When she finally spoke again, Ianto thought she sounded like a part of her had just died.

"No, it's okay. I... I want to stay with you. I made that choice a long time ago. Put Mum back on. I need to say goodbye."

"Rose, what's going on?" Ianto asked tensely. She looked over at him, tears tricking down her cheeks as she spoke.

"Mum's goin' to the parallel world with Dad. Only thing is, once the Doctor seals the breach, she won't be able to come back. I'm never going to see her again."

Ianto felt like he'd just been punched in the gut, and felt like shedding a few tears of his own. He stood back numbly, watching as Rose spoke tearfully to her mother, and was more than a little surprised when Rose suddenly turned him and held the phone out.

"Here. Mum wants to talk to you."

Ianto took it, with not a clue as to what he should say.

"Jackie..."

"Ianto, love, you need to take care of Jack, now. You hear me?"

"I hear you, Jackie," he assured her in a slightly choked voice. "I will, I promise."

"You'd better, because I don't care what the Doctor says about ruddy closed walls. If you don't, I'll find a way to come back and slap some sense into you!"

Ianto had to smile. He fully believed she'd do it, too.

"Don't worry. I'll look after him. I won't abandon him."

"Yeah, well, just see that you don't. And Ianto, you take care of yourself, too."

Ianto swallowed hard in a futile attempt to dislodge the lump in his throat.

"I'll miss you, Jackie, and so will Jack. Thankyou for everything."

"I'll miss you, too, sweetheart. You and Jack. And mind that you give Jack a big hug from me, and tell him I love him. And tell him I said he'd better behave for you!"

Ianto uttered a strangled laugh. He had no doubt that such a message from Jackie, even passed on second-hand, would be enough to garner at least a brief stint of good behaviour from Jack.

"I will. Goodbye, Jackie."

He handed the phone back to Rose, who exchanged a few more words with her mother, and then the Doctor. When she finally ended the call, she turned back to Ianto with renewed urgency and determination. He could see the anguish of losing her mother written all over her face, and he couldn't help but admire her strength in being able to set the pain aside to deal with the here and now.

"We've got less than ten minutes to get Jack, and get to the TARDIS. Let's go!"

* * *

Gage Adams was in a state of shock. First, Jack had run off, and then Ianto had run after him. Then the Doctor had allowed that young kid, Rose, to go after the both of them on her own, with no back up or protection. Then, they'd reached the top of Torchwood Tower just in time to witness the Genesis Ark break open and unleash millions of Daleks on the world. Then, Pete Tyler had declared the world a loss, and announced they were all going back to his world – Jackie included.

Oh, the older Tyler woman had put up one hell of a fight, and Gage's ears still smarted from the language she'd used when presented with the prospect of being separated from her daughter. Gage wasn't sure at what point Jackie had finally conceded, albeit tearfully, but he'd stood watching with a lump in his throat as she made one last phone call to Rose, and spoke briefly Ianto as well. It had been a heart-breaking moment; a mother farewelling her daughter for what was most likely going to be the very last time.

And then, all too quickly, Gage found himself alone with the Doctor – a prospect that had him more than a little uneasy. The mysterious alien had him quite literally at a loss for words with his manic behaviour. His biggest concern right then, though, was not what the Doctor was planning on doing to close the breach, but rather the safety of his friends.

"Doctor!" Gage yelled when the Doctor ignored him three times in a row. The Time Lord swung around to stare intently at him.

"What? What's wrong?"

"Doctor, you said the void will suck everything in," Gage said tensely.

"Everything contaminated by the void stuff," the Doctor corrected him. "You've never crossed the void, so you'll be fine. Neither has Jack or Ianto. As for me, that's why I brought these clamps. As long as I hang on to them, I'll be fine."

Gage hesitated. He didn't especially want to ask the next question, but he felt compelled.

"And what about Rose?"

The Doctor stilled, and his face became an emotionless mask.

"She'll be fine. As long as she gets to the TARDIS, she'll be fine."

It sounded very much to Gage as though the Time Lord was trying to convince himself of that more than he was his current human companion. Gage took care to avoid asking what would happen if she didn't get to safety. He didn't need to be the brightest spark in the room to understand the consequences. Again the Doctor looked at him, and Gage found himself wanting to run and hide from that intense stare.

"Well, Mr Adams? Are you ready?"

Gage let his breath out in a long hiss. No, he wasn't ready. He was about as far from ready as he could possibly be, and he wanted to scream it at the Doctor. Instead, though, he found himself nodding in response.

"Yes, sir. Just tell me what you need me to do."

* * *

to be continued...


	26. The Doorway to Hell

The corridors were eerily quiet as they made their way back towards the conversion room. Ianto had fully anticipated running into squads of Cybermen, much like the unit that had taken Jack and Lisa away. He wasn't sure whether to be relieved or concerned that there were none about.

"Where are they?" Rose asked breathlessly, echoing Ianto's own unvoiced worries. "They were everywhere before. Where've they all gone?"

"To fight the Daleks?" Ianto suggested, hoping fiercely for it to be true. If they managed to avoid running into any Cybermen, then he wouldn't be obliged to try and fire a weapon that he had no clue how to handle. His hopes were short-lived, though, when they heard the familiar, frightening sound of metal footsteps just around the corner. He exchanged stricken looks with Rose, realising that walking into a fight with a squad of the Cybermen would be suicide, whether he knew how the gun worked or not.

"I can't use this!" he hissed, feeling like an utter fool not only for his lack of know-how in weaponry, but also for the time they'd wasted in collecting the guns in the first place. "Rose, I don't know how! I don't know how to fire a gun!"

She stared back at him, wide-eyed, before looking around frantically, and then grabbing Ianto by his shirt sleeve and hauling him into an alcove.

"Be quiet," she whispered, to which Ianto responded with a roll of his eyes. He hardly had any intention of making a noise and alerting the Cybermen to their location.

They stood huddled together in the alcove, not daring to move or speak, and hardly daring to even breathe as the Cybermen marched past in perfect formation. Whether the metal monstrosities were even interested in them any longer, neither Rose nor Ianto had any way of knowing. They could only watch in mixed relief and incredulity as the Cybermen kept going, either oblivious or uncaring to their presence.

"They didn't see us," Rose murmured. Ianto peered out into the corridor cautiously, making sure the Cybermen were gone before emerging.

"Or they had something more important to deal with." He suddenly became aware that he was still holding the gun, and put it down quickly with a mixture of embarrassment and disgust. Rose eyed him critically.

"Why didn't you say before now that you don't know how to use a gun?"

"Male ego," Ianto answered bluntly. "That, and I convinced myself that I could wing it." He paused, staring back at her before grimacing. "I know. Idiotic."

Rose's expression was inscrutable for all of about three seconds before she mirrored his grimace.

"Okay, confession time. Truth is, I don't know how to use them, either. 'Specially not this ruddy thing. I was kind of hoping that you'd know, and I could just copy."

Ianto felt thoroughly sick.

"We could have both been killed, not to mention the time that we've wasted getting weapons that neither of us know how to use!"

Rose set her gun down on the floor.

"Doctor wouldn't want us using these things anyway. C'mon. Let's just go rescue Jack the old-fashioned way, with plain old human sneakiness."

Ianto shook his head incredulously.

"And I thought you were the sane one."

Rose looked affronted.

"Oi! Careful. I might take offense."

"C'mon," Ianto growled. "We've wasted too much time already."

He took off at a run, forcing Rose to do the same in order to keep up.

* * *

Ianto was acutely conscious of Rose calling to him, begging him to stop, or to at least slow down. He heard her say something along the lines of they didn't know what they would find, and that they needed to be careful. He knew she was right, but his concern now was not for himself, or even for Rose. Now, his prime concern was for Jack, and anyone else that they might have a chance of saving – Lisa included.

He ran harder, driven by fear and by frightening premonitions of Jack trapped forever in the metallic skin of a Cyber suit. It wasn't until they were nearly to the room when Ianto finally stopped, and horror dawned on his face.

"It's stopped."

"What?" Rose demanded breathlessly. "What has? What are you talking about?"

"The screaming," Ianto said in a whisper. "The screaming has stopped. It's gone quiet."

Rose found his hand, and squeezed it tightly.

"C'mon. Let's do this."

* * *

Ianto had a very vivid memory from his childhood. He recalled waking one night to the sound of his mother's scream. Scared as he'd been, he ignored the very strong desire to hide under his blankets, and had gone to investigate.

His parents, so he had discovered, were watching a horror film on the television. He'd known that he should have gone straight back to bed, but the lure of something that was strictly forbidden had proven too strong. And so he'd huddled on the stairs and watched the horrific images unfold on the little screen of his parents' TV.

Before long, he'd found himself frozen, unable to move even though he'd desperately wanted to. When the terrifying climax had finally come, Ianto had lost control of his bladder and saturated his pyjama bottoms. And that was how he'd been found by his parents when the movie finished – terrified beyond reason and utterly traumatised by what he'd seen.

As Ianto stepped past the opaque, blood-spattered sheets of plastic, Ianto felt like he was that helpless little boy all over again; an unwitting and unwilling witness to a horror show that was far too terrifying for his mind to fully comprehend.

The first thing that caught his attention was the smell. He'd noticed it earlier when they'd first followed the Cybermen, but now it hit him full strength, and he had to struggle not to throw up. It was the smell of seared flesh, of body parts cut away with blades hot enough to cook the flesh that they cut through. The smoke wafting in the air was not actually smoke, Ianto realised with a rolling stomach, but rather the natural steam of over a hundred bodies that had been freshly sliced and diced to Cyber specifications.

And then there was the blood. It lay on the floor in glistening pools, gathered mostly at the bottom of the many conversion tables that filled the room. Blood ran across the floor in thick streaks, denoting where bodies had been dragged around.

And then, finally, there were the bodies themselves.

Lifeless, mutilated bodies lay in a sickening pile by one wall. Tops of heads were missing from those still visible at the bottom of the pile. Towards the top, though, mangled corpses became a nauseating mishmash of severed limbs and discarded body parts.

It was carnage, pure and simple, and Ianto was utterly certain that it was a sight that he would be condemned to always remember.

"Oh my god," Rose moaned, clutching at Ianto's arm for support. "Ianto... Look..."

At that point, Ianto became aware of the unfortunate souls still trapped on the conversion tables, bleeding and mutilated.

"We have to help them..." Rose went on hoarsely. His hand found hers, and grasped it tightly.

"We can't."

"But we have to!"

"Look at them, Rose. They're dead. They're already dead. There's nothing we can do for them now. Please, just help me find Jack?"

How he kept his voice steady, Ianto would never know, but his calm manner seemed to help settle Rose.

"All right," she whispered, wiping roughly at her eyes. "Let's find Jack."

Ianto ventured deeper into the room, silently praying that Jack was not one of these many corpses.

"Ianto..."

He froze at the familiar voice, now wracked with pain. For the longest moment, he was too frightened to look. When he finally did, he wished so much that he hadn't.

"Oh gods... Lisa..."

He walked towards her as if on automatic pilot, sickened and distraught by the sight before him. It was almost impossible to tell how much of her was still human. To Ianto's sharp eyes, she seemed more metal the flesh, wearing what looked like a metal exoskeleton suit. Nausea wracked Ianto's body when he realised that the metal was, in fact, now a part of her.

She was covered in her own blood; the knives from the conversion unit still half-buried in her flesh. Her eyes were wild with pain, and seemed barely capable of focusing on him as he approached her.

"Lisa," he whispered again as he walked stumblingly towards her.

"Get me out of here, Ianto," she begged him. "Please, get me out of here!"

He was crying even before he realised it, and the tears he tried so uselessly to suppress stung his eyes badly.

"I can't," he told her in a stricken voice. "I'm sorry, Lisa. I'm so sorry."

"Please, Ianto," Lisa pleaded with him. "Don't leave me here! You have to help me!"

"I can't," he insisted, though his tone suggested that perhaps he wasn't so sure. "I can't help you, Lisa. There's nothing I can do."

Bitterness and hurt filled her face, briefly overriding the spasms of pain that wracked her features.

"You can't help me, but I bet you'll try and help him, won't you? You bastard."

"Lisa, look at you," Ianto choked out. "How am I supposed to help you? What can I possibly do?"

"Just get me off this damned table," she sobbed. "I know I'm dying, but please don't let me die on this table. Please, Ianto, help me?"

"Help her," Rose said abruptly, and Ianto started in surprise, having momentarily forgotten she was even there. She squeezed his hand briefly in reassurance.

"I'll find Jack. Help her however you can."

Ianto conceded with a quick nod, and began to search for a way to release her.

"Thankyou," Lisa whispered, though whether it was directed towards Ianto or Rose, Ianto didn't know and wasn't going to ask.

"What happened?" he asked as he examined the table and its restraints. "Where are all the Cybermen?"

"Don't know," Lisa answered breathlessly. "There was a massive power surge, and then everything just stopped. All their machinery, everything. The next thing I knew, they were all leaving. I don't know where they went, and I don't care. As... as long as they don't come back."

"Did you see what happened to Jack?" Ianto asked, and Lisa uttered a bitter, slightly strangled laugh.

"Always about him, isn't it? Bloody hell, Ianto."

"I made a promise to him, Lisa."

"You made one to me, too!" she exploded with as much force as her weakening lungs would allow. As it was, the strength of her anger and grief drove him back a couple of steps. "You promised to love me no matter what! You broke that promise, Ianto! Not me!"

He wanted to argue with her, he really did. In the end, though, his head dropped and all he could do was agree miserably.

"I know," Ianto whispered brokenly. "I'm sorry."

It wasn't anywhere near enough, and for the first time Ianto considered that perhaps he was as much at fault for the breakdown of their relationship as she had been. Too late, though – those realisations always came too damned late, when all he was left with was self-recrimination.

She stared at him for several long seconds through pain-filled eyes before speaking in a defeated voice.

"They took him to a conversion table only a couple of minutes before the power surge happened... somewhere over on the other side of the room. He probably hasn't been hurt at all, the lucky bastard."

Frowning, Ianto reached across and tried to lift one of the metal arms away from Lisa. It jolted one of the knives still buried in her stomach, and she screamed in pain.

"I'm sorry," Ianto choked out, tears streaming down his cheeks and blinding him. "God, Lisa, I'm sorry... I... I can't do it. I can't get you off here without turning the power back on, but if I manage to do that..."

"It'll just restart the process," Lisa whispered. "Ianto..."

"The Doctor," Ianto said abruptly. As little as he trusted the Time Lord, he could see no other way to help the woman that he had once, not so long ago, intended to propose to. "We'll wait for the Doctor. He'll know what to do. He'll be able to help you."

"Ianto, look at me," she whispered. He raised his eyes to meet hers, compelled to obey. Lisa swallowed convulsively before going on unsteadily. "I'm not going to ask you to lie and tell me you love me. I know you don't. And I won't lie either. I hate him for taking you away from me."

"Lisa, please, what are you..."

"Kill me," she whispered. Ianto felt as though he'd just been sucker-punched. He was still trying to regain the wind that had been knocked from his very lungs when she spoke again. "If you leave me here, like this, I'll die slowly. If you do it... at least I know it'll be quick."

Ianto's face crumpled at her plea, and his knees buckled beneath him, sending him to the floor in a pitiful heap.

"No," he moaned in distress. "No, please. Don't ask me to do that. I can't do it..."

"You owe me something, Ianto," Lisa demanded, equally distraught. "I don't want to hurt anymore. You're the only one who can do that for me."

Not strictly true, a tiny voice whispered in the darkest corners of his mind. It was a voice that he steadfastly ignored. Despite knowing that Jack was more than capable of taking a life, he would not order Jack to consciously and wilfully kill her... or anyone, for that matter.

Not to mention, he had no clue at this point what sort of condition Jack was in.

"Ianto, please, just do it," Lisa begged him. "It hurts. I don't want to hurt anymore."

Distraught, Ianto looked around and his gaze fell on a sliver of scrap metal. Could he really do it? He consciously asked the question of himself, and realised that even at that moment, with the choice right in front of him, he couldn't answer it.

Earlier, when he'd taken Spence's gun, he'd had the same choice before him, and God knew he'd had far more reason to do the deed then than he had now. And yet, he hadn't been able to do it. Instead, he'd merely knocked the son of a bitch out and then watched later with no small amount of satisfaction as Spence was felled by a Dalek death ray. He had been able to relish Spence's death without experiencing the guilt of being responsible for it.

Here, a woman that he really did believe that he'd once loved was now pleading with him to end her suffering, and her life.

Did he love Lisa now? No, he did not and he wouldn't try to kid himself or anyone else otherwise. Did he want her to die? Again, no, and he wasn't sure if he could live with himself if he were to give in to her begging and end it for her. A brief and somewhat sinister thought whispered in his mind that perhaps that was her final revenge – to place him in a situation where he would eventually self-destruct from guilt.

And even as the thoughts spun in his mind, he found his hand had closed around the piece of metal, clutching it so tightly that it cut into his hand.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, unable to look her in the eye as he slowly picked himself up off the floor. "I'm so sorry, Lisa. Please forgive me?"

"I forgive you, Ianto," she told him. He thought he could hear a hint of desperation in her voice as she spoke, and tried futilely to ignore it. "I never blamed you. I... I don't even blame him, not really. I blame this place. I blame Torchwood."

There was something that he could agree to, and grab hold of, and he did so with a ferocity that frightened even himself.

"Yes, it's Torchwood. It's this whole place. If we hadn't taken those jobs here, we wouldn't be here now. We'd be somewhere else entirely..."

"And this would probably still be happening to other people," Lisa said softly. "And... Jack would still be a prisoner here. I blame Torchwood, but that doesn't change the fact that you were right."

Any fight that Ianto might still have had left him in a rush, and his head dropped forward to rest against her metal clad shoulder, sobbing heavily. Tears rolled down the sides of Lisa's face, leaving glistening streaks as she watched him out of the corner of her eye.

"I'm going to die no matter what, Ianto. Please don't let me go on hurting."

Slowly, Ianto raised his head and finally made himself look her in the eye. He expected to see hate, or some sort of recrimination, but all he saw was forgiveness and relief. He wasn't sure which would have been worse.

"I'm sorry," he whispered again. Then, steeling himself as best as he could, he drove the makeshift weapon in under her sternum and angled it upwards so that it pierced her heart. It was almost instantaneous; Lisa's eyes went almost comically wide with pain and shock, she uttered a tiny gasp, and then the breath stilled in her body.

Ianto released his grip on the metal and leaned in against Lisa's lifeless body, weeping uncontrollably. He didn't know how long he'd been there for when a hand on his shoulder startled him back to reality. Rose was there, and though she didn't say anything, the look on her face as her eyes flickered to the metal blade told him she knew what he'd done.

"C'mon," she said softly. "I've found Jack."

"Is he all right?" Ianto asked, quietly hating how his voice shook. Rose's expression caused his heart to sink.

"You'd best come see for yourself."

* * *

Like Lisa, Jack was trapped on a conversion table, but unlike her it appeared that the actual upgrading hadn't actually begun; not properly. He lay naked on the table, stripped of even the flimsy shorts he'd been wearing, and bleeding all over his body where numerous wires had been implanted into his flesh in apparent preparation for the main stages of upgrading. As with Lisa, though, the blade of more than one knife was buried in his flesh, leaving deep and agonising lacerations that could not heal whilst the still hot blades remained.

As terrible as the sight was, Ianto felt guiltily relieved that he had something to take his mind off what he had done less than a minute ago. Oh, he knew well enough that the reality of his actions would hit sooner or later, but right then he would prefer it be later, and not sooner.

His gaze swept briefly up and down Jack's naked form, and he grimaced a little in embarrassment for Rose.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, all the while feeling a right fool. Rose easily guessed what he was referring to, and huffed loudly in response.

"Not like I haven't seen it before. Doctor told him once to create a distraction, so he stripped off and ran naked through a hospital."

Ianto shook his head, thinking of Jack's propensity for baring his body.

"Somehow I am not surprised by that."

Jack, who up to that point had appeared unconscious, now opened his eyes and uttered a plaintive cry at the sight of his beloved Ianto.

"Yan toe! Help..."

The word dissolved into an agonised wave of sobbing, bringing fresh tears to Ianto's eyes.

"We will, cariad," he promised. "Just be brave a little longer, and we'll get you out of there."

"It hurts," Jack sobbed, and Ianto felt his stomach roll as his thoughts went back momentarily to Lisa.

"Oi, snap out of it!" Rose growled. "We have to get Jack out, and there's only a couple of minutes left until the Doctor does whatever it is that he needs to do."

Ianto felt ill all over again.

"We can't get him out, though. Not without putting the power back on, and if we do that..."

"It'll just start up the upgrading process again. Right."

Rose reached up to lay her palm tenderly against Jack's cheek. He whimpered softly, but said nothing.

"The Doctor had something," Ianto said abruptly, recalling the slender, pen-like device that he'd seen in the Time Lord's hand. Rose nodded.

"His sonic screwdriver. If we had that, we could get out of here in a second. And Gage, he had some weird thing that unlocked Jack's chains and your cell door. Wish I'd thought to grab that, at least. Didn't know we'd need it, though, did I?"

"So all we can do then is wait," Ianto said bleakly.

"When the Doctor's done what he has to do," Rose said, "he'll come and find us. He'll help us get Jack out, and then we'll leave here together. All of us."

"You hear that, Jack?" Ianto asked. "We're all going to leave together. No one gets left behind this time."

"Left behind," Jack whimpered, and Ianto leaned in to kiss him lovingly on the forehead.

"No, love. Not this time. I promise. Now just hang in there for a little while longer."

"I could tell a story, if you like," Rose suggested. "It's a story about a brave man who loved his friends so much that he was willing to give his life up to save them. And not just once, but lots of times. A man called Jack."

Jack's pain-riddled features creased in confusion.

"M... Me?"

"Yes, you," she confirmed, smiling gently at him. "You're something special, Jack Harkness, and your not being able to die isn't anything to do with it."

"I don't remember," Jack cried. "I want to remember, and I can't."

"You will," Ianto reassured him. "Eventually, you will."

"Yan, ouch," Jack said suddenly, his attention directed downwards. Ianto followed his gaze in confusion, and blanched at the sight of his hand dripping blood.

"Oh..."

"Quickly, elevate it," Rose told him. "Let me find something to wrap it up."

Ianto stayed where he was, leaning against the conversion table for support. Any light-headedness he might have been experiencing was quickly washed away, though, when Jack spoke miserably.

"Yan, please don't die."

"What?" Ianto asked in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"All the blood," Jack said. His gaze went around the room to others similarly trapped in conversion units. All of them were dead. "They bled lots and then they died."

Ianto barely suppressed a groan, knowing the sound would not bolster Jack's confidence at all.

"Jack, it's okay. It's just a cut. I'm not going to die, I promise you. Please, love, just stay calm, or you'll hurt yourself even worse."

Rose returned, then, carrying a strip of material. As she wrapped his hand up, he decided that he absolutely didn't want to know where she'd gotten it.

"There," she murmured as she tied it off. "Not exactly professional, but it'll do."

Ianto gazed down at his injured hand, and flexed it experimentally. The burning pain that accompanied the gesture was a welcome distraction from the dark thoughts that threatened to consume him. Focused as he was, it took him half a minute to realise that Rose was speaking to him again.

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I wasn't listening."

"Yeah, I noticed," Rose retorted. "I said, do you feel that?"

Ianto frowned and was about to ask what she was talking about when he realised. Everything around them – the floor, the very walls – had started to vibrate.

"Earthquake?" he wondered aloud, but immediately dismissed the thought. He knew as well as any Torchwood employee that the Tower was one of the most earthquake-proof buildings in the world. Whatever was causing the building to tremble and shake was happening from within its walls.

"The Doctor," Rose said in nervous excitement. "I bet it's the Doctor doing it... whatever it is." She offered the two men a brave smile. It'll all be over soon. You'll see."

Ianto tried to smile for Jack's benefit, but the smile rapidly faded from his face within seconds.

"Rose? Rose, what's going on? What's happening to you?"

Rose could only stare at him in fright and horror as she was lifted clean off her feet by an invisible force, and swept suddenly towards the open doorway.

* * *

_to be continued_...


	27. Promises Kept

Ianto lunged at Rose as she was dragged past and was just in time to grab hold of her ankle. He would have been pulled right along with her, but for Jack who was holding onto his other hand in a vice-like grip. As it was, they made for a precarious and somewhat ridiculous sight – Rose and Ianto both literally hanging in mid-air and anchored only by the sheer strength of a wounded companion.

"Ianto!" Rose screamed as the force pulling on her grew in strength, threatening to rip her from Ianto's grasp. He strained to pull her back towards him, and risked loosening his grip just long enough to be able to wrap his arm fully around her calf, giving himself a more secure hold. He felt as though both of his arms were being pulled out of their sockets, but he struggled to hold on all the same.

"Jack!" Ianto yelled. "Jack, hold on! Don't let go!"

There was no verbal response. He twisted his head a little to look in the midst of the chaos, and was stunned by the calm determination on the other man's face. Jack's grip on his wrist was both bruising and reassuring in its crushing strength, and he knew in that moment that Jack was never going to let go. It was up to him, then, not to let go of Rose.

Rose was screaming, and he couldn't suppress a scream of his own as pieces of debris, both large and small, lifted off the ground and flew past them, threatening to slam into them and knock Rose out of his grasp. All the same, though, in the midst of it all, he couldn't help but notice that not everything was affected. Only Rose, and only certain unsecured pieces of equipment were being swept up.

It was a pointless realisation, though, and soon fled his mind as he felt Rose slip in his hold.

"Ianto!" she screamed again, and he tightened his hold as much as he could. His arm ached horribly, and the very muscles burned with exertion. Once this was over, he knew his arm would be next to useless, but until then he struggled desperately to hold on.

And then, as suddenly as it started, it was over. One moment both he and Rose had been in mid-air, anchored only by Jack's strength; the next, Ianto found himself on the floor and lying on top of Rose in what could have been an extremely embarrassing position for the both of them, had they not been equally dazed.

"Are you okay?" Ianto asked as he climbed off her awkwardly, trying to avoid putting his hands anywhere that might earn him a Tyler slap. Rose sat up slowly, and gingerly rubbed at her ankle and calf before getting unsteadily to her feet.

"Yeah, I think so. Although, not so sure about this…"

He watched as she pulled her mobile phone from her pocket. It was broken, smashed when their collective weight fell on it.

"Damn. I'll have to get the Doctor to fix it, or Mum'll go spare when she can't call me…"

Rose trailed off abruptly as she realised what she'd said, and her breath hitched slightly in her chest as the full weight of comprehension set in. Ianto badly wanted to offer her some sort of comfort, but no words came to mind. Instead, he settled for taking her hand and squeezing it gently to reassure her that she wasn't alone. She managed to favour him with a weak smile and forced laughter.

"Hey, it's a good excuse to get a new one, right? Think of all the fancy ones I'll get to choose from…"

Ianto smiled sympathetically, and then turned his attention to Jack.

"What about you, Jack? Are you okay?"

It was fairly obvious that he wasn't. Purely by the look of him, Ianto guessed that the energy that Jack had expended in keeping both him and Rose from being swept away was enormous, and it was rapidly taking its toll. His face was the colour of ash, his eyes were dulled with exhaustion, and the only sounds that escaped his lips were soft whimpers and sobs of pain.

"No," Ianto murmured grimly. "You're not okay. Rose, we need to get him off this bloody table, and out of this place."

"The Doctor'll head for the TARDIS, if he's sorted everything," she mused. "I'll go and meet him, and bring him here."

Ianto looked from Jack to Rose with reluctance. He was hesitant to agree, if only because he simply didn't trust the Doctor not to bundle Rose into the TARDIS, and leave without them. On the other hand, though, not allowing Rose to go would been a greater delay, and he wanted Jack free as soon as possible.

"Go," he told her softly. "But please, bring him here. Don't let him leave without Jack again."

"I won't, I swear it," she promised, and hurried from the room. When he turned back to look at Jack once more, the other man's eyes were locked onto him , silently asking a question that he had no strength left to voice.

"I'm not leaving you," Ianto promised. "Not for any reason. I promise."

* * *

"Is that it?" Gage asked breathlessly as the Doctor examined the place where the breach had occurred. "Is it done?"

The entire experience had left Gage shaken, to say the least. Whilst it had quickly become clear that he himself hadn't been in immediate danger from the powerful suction of the void, there had been one frightening moment when the lever on the Doctor's side had failed to remain locked open. Gage had yelled at the Time Lord not to let go of the magnetic clamps, and had crossed the width of the corridor himself to lock it back into place. As he'd crossed, a Cyberman on its way to be dragged into the void had clipped him on the shoulder as it flew past. The force of the blow had knocked Gage clean off his feet and sent him rolling across the floor towards to the open breach.

For a moment, Gage had thought he was going to be lost to the void despite the Doctor's earlier reassurances, but the momentum that had sent him tumbling towards the opening had ended and he'd been able to scramble out of the way of everything else that was flying into the void. Struggling to ignore his injured shoulder, Gage had slotted the lever back into place, and then stood back to watch as the void dragged everything in, before the breach sealed itself for good.

Slowly, the Doctor now stepped back from the wall. He fancied that he could sense Jackie Tyler on the other side. He could almost taste her grief. Yes, she'd regained her husband, but she'd lost her daughter. He had sympathy for the woman, especially given the care that she'd shown towards Jack and his friend. At the same time, though, he could deny that he was overjoyed at the prospect that he wasn't going to lose Rose.

The Doctor turned to face Gage, and spoke solemnly.

"It's done. The breach is closed."

Gage swallowed nervously, paralysed by the power of the Time Lord's stare. For the first time, it occurred to him that he might just be putting himself directly into the line of fire for blame over the entire mess. He may have had nothing to do with the ghost shifts or the sphere, but he was still Torchwood. He wanted to run as far and as fast as he could, but somehow he gathered what scraps were left of his courage, and waited.

For several long seconds, the Doctor and Gage simply stared at each other. Then, abruptly, the Doctor's face split into a blinding grin.

"Well, then, let's go and find Rose, Jack and Mr Jones, shall we?"

And then they were off, with not a word or even so much as a look of recrimination. Gage could only follow, and hope that it wasn't just a case of the calm before the Time Lord storm.

"Do you run everywhere?" Gage dared to ask in between gasps for air as they made their way quickly back towards Bay Four, where Gage knew the Doctor's ship was located. The Doctor answered him with another impossibly wide grin.

"Running's the best part! C'mon, Mr Adams, shake a leg!"

Gage rolled his eyes and hurried to keep up. He couldn't help but wonder how the Doctor even knew where to go to find his ship, but instinct and a very real sense of self-preservation encouraged him to keep his mouth shut and not ask fool questions.

Entry to Secure Archives was completely open, and Gage winced at the sight of the blasted-open doors. He had a sudden, sickening suspicion that none of his colleagues had survived the invasion. There was no time to dwell, though, and it was all he could do to keep pace with the Doctor.

They were just approaching the doors to Bay Four when a voice shouted out to them.

"Doctor!"

The Doctor wheeled around, shock on his face.

"Rose?"

She flew into his arms, hugging him fiercely.

"Thank God you're all right," she said breathlessly. "Is it over? Did you get rid of them all?"

"They're gone," he confirmed. Carefully detaching himself from her grasp, he eyed her up and down with a critical gaze. "What happened? Why aren't you safe in the TARDIS?"

"Jack was captured by the Cybermen," she explained. When Gage uttered a gasp of shock, she favoured him with a quick smile. "It's okay. He wasn't converted. Ianto and I were trying to rescue him when you... Well, when you did whatever it was that you did. What did you do, anyway?"

"Never mind that," the Doctor growled. "I told you to get to the TARDIS!"

"And I told you, we were trying to help Jack. He's trapped on a conversion table, and we can't get him loose..."

The Doctor paced furiously, and ran his fingers through his hair, shaken at the realisation that he could have lost her after all.

"You should have left him, and gotten yourself to safety!"

Abruptly, Rose's face darkened.

"And what, just left him behind? Again? He was the only one left alive in that room, Doctor. Are you saying we should have just left him there, with a whole lot of dead bodies? Just like the last time? Well, sorry, it wasn't happening, and don't you dare tell me it's what I should've done."

"Rose..." the Doctor said in a strained voice, but she wasn't done.

"My mum might not be here now, but don't you think you're safe from getting slapped."

For a moment, the look on the Doctor's face was comical, and Gage had to bite his lips to keep from laughing. Then, the Time Lord shook his head.

"That isn't what I meant, and you know it. Listen, Rose, I had to open the breach just one last time, all the way. Because the Cybermen had crossed the void, and the Daleks had lived in it, they were all dragged in. Anything that crossed the void was at risk."

Rose's breath caught in her throat as she began to understand what he was trying to tell her.

"We crossed the void, when we went to that parallel world."

The Doctor nodded.

"We're both contaminated by void stuff. Anything and anyone that's crossed the void is the same. I wanted you inside the TARDIS because the moment I opened the breach, the void was going to drag in anything that's come into contact with it."

"Including you?"

"That's why I had the magnetic clamps," he assured her. "And why I wanted Mr Adams to help me. He's never crossed the void, and so he was perfectly safe."

Rose glanced at Gage, and for the first time noticed his injured shoulder.

"Doesn't look like he was perfectly safe from where I'm standing."

Gage shook his head.

"It's nothing. I just got clipped by one of those bloody cyber things when it flew past. I'm fine."

She didn't look entirely convinced, but decided not to dispute him.

"So, what about Jack and Ianto, then?" she asked the Doctor.

"They've never crossed the void, either. Didn't have an ounce of void stuff on either of them. They were safe, Rose. But you weren't."

Rose felt the colour bleed out of her cheeks a little as the full realisation of what he wasn't saying hit home.

"You're saying I could've been sucked into the void right along with the Daleks and the Cybermen?"

"Yes," the Doctor said softly. "That is exactly what I'm trying to say."

She smiled as weakly.

"Well, just as well for Jack and Ianto, then."

"Why? What do you mean?"

"Well, I nearly did get dragged out, Doctor, 'cept Ianto grabbed me by the leg and wouldn't let go, and Jack had him by the wrist and he wouldn't let go. They both saved me, Doctor. If it weren't for them, I guess I'd be in the void right now."

The Doctor was hard-pressed right then to single out any one particular emotion that he was experienced. Relief, gratitude, pride...

He took her hand and held it tightly, grateful all over again, and not just for his feisty young companion.

"C'mon. Let's go get Jack and Ianto."

* * *

Jack hadn't said a word since before the incident where Rose had almost been swept away from them, and Ianto was starting to worry. He seemed to be in and out of consciousness – increasingly more out than in – and his awareness when conscious was sketchy at best. Not that Ianto had any particularly deep-set concerns for Jack's physical wellbeing. Jack couldn't die, and Ianto knew well enough that he would heal fairly quickly once released from the conversion table.

No, Ianto's concerns lay primarily with Jack's state of mind and emotional wellbeing, both of which he suspected were deteriorating with every minute that Jack remained trapped. He hoped and prayed that Rose would return quickly with the Doctor, but a darker side of his mind whispered that was a fool. They weren't coming back, and he was an idiot for thinking that they would.

The Doctor had abandoned Jack once, he thought bitterly. What was there to stop him from doing it again? He was under illusions that Rose was in any way capable of influencing the Time Lord's decisions. After all, what influence could a teenager girl possibly have on an apparently ancient alien?

He dreaded what would happen if his fears became reality, and the Doctor left without them. He doubted any Torchwood survivors would be interested in them in this horrific aftermath, but it wasn't Torchwood that worried him. It likely would not be long before UNIT descended on the place to take control, and above all else, Ianto wanted to avoid letting Jack fall into their hands. If that were to happen, then they would be right back at square one.

On the other hand, Ianto couldn't get Jack free on his own, so what was he to do?

"Please hurry, Rose," he whispered. "Please hurry back."

The silence was oppressive. Even the faint moans and whimpers that had been coming from Jack had ceased, and Ianto found he desperately wanted to create some sort of noise to compensate. In an effort to distract himself, he took to examining the hand-shaped bruise that was already forming on his wrist. It ached a little, but he would never have complained about it. In truth, he was in awe of the strength that Jack had displayed, and he wondered it was indicative of Jack's natural strength, or whether it was simply down to adrenalin. Either way, Jack had saved both him and Rose.

He froze, hearing footsteps that gradually got louder. Ianto got slowly to his feet, hoping furiously that it was Rose and the Doctor, and not anyone else. His relief was palpable when Rose ran back into the room, with Gage and the Doctor close behind her.

"Sweet mother of God," Gage groaned, slapping a hand over his mouth and nose as the stench of decaying and cauterised flesh fully hit.

"Over here," Ianto called out hoarsely. He didn't dare step away from Jack, and risk upsetting him by breaking contact. The Doctor strode over, seemingly unaffected by the carnage around them, and eyed the table and its restraints critically.

"Shouldn't take too long to get him off there. Mr Adams, do you still have that lock-pick of yours?"

"What? Oh... Yes, sir, I have it right here."

Gage pulled the device out of his pocket and stepped forward to help the Time Lord. As he and the Doctor set to work releasing Jack, Rose nudged Ianto gently.

"See? Told you he wouldn't leave Jack behind again."

Ianto sighed softly.

"I know, but I'm not going to apologise for doubting him. He doesn't exactly have a brilliant track record with Jack."

"No, he doesn't," Rose agreed. "But he wants to try and make up for it. That's gotta count for something."

Ianto conceded that, and he appreciated that the Doctor had apparently not required any convincing to come back for Jack.

"Ianto!" Gage called out, and Ianto hurried over as Jack's arms and legs were freed.

"I need you both to hold him," the Doctor explained. "I'm going to need to cut through the wires, and it will probably hurt."

"You can't take them out?" Rose asked, eyeing the offending wires with a shudder.

"I can, but not here," the Doctor answered. "Back in the TARDIS, where it can be done quickly and painlessly. But we need to get him there first."

Trying to suppress his own worries, Ianto slid his arm across Jack's bare chest while soothing Jack's forehead and temples with his other hand. Jack's eyes flickered open and eventually focused on Ianto. They were bloodshot and wet with tears both shed and unshed.

"That's it," Ianto murmured. "Just watch me, and we'll have you off here in a moment. Be brave just a little longer."

Ianto's sharp ears caught a low buzzing sound, and a second later Jack howled in pain as the Doctor severed the wires that had been implanted into his body.

"Easy, love," Ianto said, raising the volume of his voice to try and be heard over Jack's distressed and pained cries. "Don't fight us, Jack, please!"

"Yan," Jack sobbed. Great, large tears welled in his eyes and spilled down his cheeks, but he ceased struggling all the same.

"That's it," Ianto murmured, kissing him tenderly on the forehead. "Try to stay calm, and we'll have you loose soon."

"That's quite impressive, Mr Jones," the Doctor remarked curiously as he set himself to cutting through the remaining wires. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think he loved you."

Ianto glanced at him darkly. He was see-sawing violently between being in awe of the Time Lord, and wanting to punch him in the face.

"You say that like you don't believe it's possible for him to love anyone."

"Well, considering his reputation," the Doctor started, only to falter at Ianto's glare.

"He's been trapped here for over a hundred years, sir. He has no reputation, as far as I'm concerned, and I'll ask you to kindly avoid tormenting him. He's had to put up with far too much of that, of late."

The Doctor stared at Ianto intently before finally nodding solemnly.

"You're quite right. I apologise, to you and to Jack. Speaking of whom, how about we get him on his feet?"

"Jack?" Gage asked gently as they helped Jack up into a sitting position on the conversion table. "We're going to help you to stand up now, okay? If you can't do it on your own, don't worry about it. Just lean on your own, don't worry about it. Just lean on me and Ianto, all right?"

"And here," the Doctor added, quickly slipping his coat over Jack's shoulders. At Ianto's raised eyebrow, he offered a slight shrug. "It's cold."

Ianto couldn't argue with that. Taking extreme care, he helped Jack to slip his arms into the sleeves, and then he and Gage carefully got Jack on his feet.

"That's it, just lean on us," Ianto murmured as Jack stumbled. "Like Gage said, we won't let you fall."

Jack looked around slowly. His breath was coming in short gasps, and Ianto was beginning to worry that he was heading towards a state of shock.

"Are we leaving?" Jack asked softly. Ianto nodded firmly.

"Yes, cariad. We are leaving."

"Never coming back?"

None of them could miss the hope in his voice. Gage rubbed his back soothingly.

"You'll never have to lay eyes on this place again. The Doctor's going to take you far away from here."

Jack looked to the Doctor, who smiled gently at his former companion.

"As far away as you want, Jack. You're safe, now."

The look on Jack's face was inscrutable as he looked at the Time Lord, but that look melted into one that was full of emotion when he returned his attention to Ianto.

"I want to leave," he admitted. "Please."

Ianto smiled.

"All right, then. Let's go. Easy, now. One step at a time, that's the way..."

The Doctor and Rose trailed behind as Ianto and Gage guided Jack from the room.

"He's not sure about me," the Doctor murmured. "Well, I suppose I can't blame him. Not the same face, after all."

"Plus, there's that whole left him behind on a dead satellite thing," Rose added with a deceptive amicability. The Doctor grimaced, and opted not to reply to that. He was all too aware that he had a long way to go to rebuild the bridges that he'd so thoroughly burned.

They halted just outside the room, and Ianto gently detached himself from Jack, who uttered a cry of protest. Leaning in, Ianto brushed a soft kiss over Jack's lips, quieting him.

"Hush, love. I'll be right back. There's just one thing I need to do. Stay with Gage. I promise I won't be long." Then, to Gage he said, "I need that lock-pick."

Gage handed it over without protest, and Ianto disappeared back into that hellish room.

"What's he up to?" the Doctor growled.

"I think I know," Rose murmured. "Just let him do what he has to do."

The Doctor looked over at Jack, and took in the sight of the young immortal clinging to Gage as though his life depended on it.

"He trusts Ianto, and he trusts you," the Doctor commented thoughtfully. Gage nodded. He made no effort to loosen Jack's hold on him, and indeed he didn't seem the least bit embarrassed by the fact that he had a near-naked man clinging to him with a death grip.

"Mainly Ianto, but yes. Me, too. I'm still not quite sure why, because I sure as hell don't deserve the trust he's put in me. God knows I treated him as badly as everyone else before Ianto took over looking after him. But thanks to Ianto, I had my eyes opened nice and wide. He did that for all of us, you know. Those of us who worked in Secure Archives, I mean. With the exception of just a few, Ianto managed to show all of us that Jack here was as human as the rest of us." A soft laugh escaped Gage's lips. "We called him Joe to start with, before Ianto and Jack escaped. No one knew what his name really was, so when Ianto started taking care of him, he called him Joe. He apparently didn't remember his name was Jack until after they escaped. We did this to him, you know. Torchwood. Turned him into this from... from whatever he used to be like."

"A hero," Rose said with quiet determination. "He was a hero."

Gage rubbed Jack's back soothingly.

"I can believe that." He looked to the Doctor anxiously. "You can help him, can't you? You can help him recover from what this place has done to him?"

The Doctor walked closer and reached up slowly towards Jack's temple. Jack uttered a soft whimper of fright and shied away from him, and the Doctor obligingly withdrew his hand.

"I hope so," he answered soberly. "But until we get him into the TARDIS, and I can assess the extent of the damage, I just don't know. There's every possibility that some memories can't be retrieved. A hundred years is a long time for a human to retain all their knowledge, and when you add trauma like this into the equation... I just can't guarantee anything."

"But you'll do what you can, right?" Rose pressed. The Doctor nodded again.

"Yes. I'll do everything I can, I swear it."

Gage sighed softly.

"That's all we can ask. I guess that first and foremost, we just want Jack to be safe."

"He couldn't be anywhere safer than the TARDIS," the Doctor assured him. Out of the corner of his eye, Gage caught sight of the look on Rose's face at that comment, but chose to keep quiet. Putting an end to further discussion, Ianto emerged from the room once more, this time with his clothes stained with blood that was not his own. He looked exhausted and stretched beyond his mental, physical and emotional capacities.

"I'm ready. Let's go."

* * *

It took them nearly twenty minutes to make their way back to Bay Four, and in that time they'd all heard the sounds of activity coming up from the lower levels – the sounds of a considerable number of people converging on the Torchwood Tower.

"It's UNIT," the Doctor said as they made their way as quickly as possible to the TARDIS. Ianto couldn't quite keep the panic from his expression.

"We can't let them get their hands on Jack. They'd treat him as badly as Torchwood. The Brigadier said as much..."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow quizzically.

"You've spoken to the Brigadier?"

"Just the once," Ianto confirmed. "Whilst we were at Sarah Jane's home. He warned me that the only reason UNIT did nothing about Jack was because they had no means to contain him."

The Doctor's expression darkened noticeably.

"I see." He came to a halt in front of the familiar blue doors of the TARDIS, and looked around at Jack. "Remember her, Jack?"

Jack's forehead creased as into a frown as he stared up at the ship. The Doctor smiled faintly as he recalled his first time meeting Jack.

"You complimented me on her panels, remember?"

Again, Jack didn't reply, and the look on his face told them all that he was in no way certain or trusting of the Doctor.

"It's a bloody police box," Ianto said bluntly, none too impressed.

"Chameleon circuit jammed," the Doctor answered with a slight shrug. "Long story. Anyway..."

"Here," Rose murmured with the slightest hint of impatience, and she shouldered the Doctor out of the way to open the door with her own key. "Go ahead."

Ianto and Gage glanced at each other, suddenly wary of the wisdom of venturing into a strange ship. Ultimately, though, they knew they had no choice, and their decision was made for them in the end when they heard the sounds of a UNIT squad entering Bay Four.

"Quickly," Gage muttered grimly, and they ushered Jack through the blue doors and into the TARDIS.

The Doctor ushered Rose through, and was about to follow when an authoritative voice spoke loudly behind him.

"Doctor!"

The Time Lord swung around, and was not entirely surprised to find himself face to face with aa fully armed squadron of UNIT soldiers. His gaze swept over them critically, and finally came to rest on the young man leading them.

"Lieutenant. What can I do for you?"

The lieutenant swallowed nervously, and when he spoke again it was with an uncertain tremor.

"I... I have to ask you to surrender the creature, sir."

It would have been particularly difficult to miss the threatening look that darkened the Doctor's face. He knew full well that the hapless young man was referring to Jack, but he had no intention of making it that easy for them.

"What _creature_ would you be referring to, Lieutenant?"

"It was just taken into the TARDIS, sir. I... I have orders to take it into UNIT custody."

"Let me see if I understand you properly, Lieutenant. You have here an entire building that has been utterly devastated, rooms full of alien technology that anyone could walk in and scavenge, possibly numerous injured people who may need urgent medical assistance... but your first priority is to find and lock up an innocent man?"

The Doctor's voice grew louder and angrier as he spoke, and by the time he'd done speaking, the lieutenant looked for all the world like he was about to soil himself.

"Sir, it's a danger to everyone. UNIT can't allow it to go free."

"_It_ has a name, Lieutenant," the Doctor snapped. "_His_ name is Captain Jack Harkness. He's my companion, and I'm taking responsibility for him as of now. UNIT will _not_ be taking him away just to lock him up all over again, or for any other reason. Am I making myself clear?"

The lieutenant looked like he wanted to be anywhere but there, but he resisted an almost overpowering urge to run.

"I'm sorry, Doctor, but I have my orders. We want the creature, and we'll use force if necessary."

The Doctor's expression very suddenly turned amicable, and he smiled brightly at the young man.

"Well, when you put it that way, I don't seem to have much of a choice, do I?"

Confusion and a hint of suspicion flickered across the lieutenant's face, but he shook his head in agreement.

"No, sir. You don't. Now, if you would kindly bring it out here?"

"Of course. I'll be right back."

And with that, he stepped into the TARDIS, and closed the doors behind him.

"They never learn," he remarked dryly as he bounded over to the central column. "Now, Rose, could you please show these gentlemen to the medical room? I'll just get us underway, and I'll join you shortly."

"But those UNIT soldiers..." Gage started to say. The Doctor grinned at him.

Don't worry. They can't get in. And we'll be away from here in just a minute. You're all safe now, I promise."

"C'mon," Rose murmured, urging them towards a doorway that was on the other side of the control room. "Med room is this way."

The Doctor watched them go before initiating dematerialisation.

"Easy does it, old girl," he murmured soothingly. "Let's try doing it smoothly for once. I think poor old Jack has been knocked about quite enough today, don't you think?"

He felt an answering hum in his mind, and smiled sadly. Unlike himself, she fully welcomed Jack back into her fold without hesitation, and her song – a poignant mixture of both joy and sorrow – made the Doctor want to weep.

They left Canary Wharf behind and entered smoothly into the Vortex without the usual jolts and shudders. Relieved to finally be away from the carnage that had taken place, he took a moment on his own to try and regroup. He was still standing there, lost in thought, when a hand on his shoulder startled him back to reality.

"Not really the best time to go zoning out, you know," Rose remarked quietly. He nodded.

"I know. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"About how much work it's going to take to give Jack his life back. There's no quick fix to this, Rose. His mind is damaged, and it's going to take time to heal."

"Lucky you're a Time Lord, then, huh? 'Cause if there's one thing you've got plenty of, it's time."

The Doctor smiled sadly.

"I wish it were that simple."

"Oh, I know it's not. Just... try not to go all dark and dismal on us, all right? Now, are you coming? 'Cause Jack needs that medical care you promised him."

"I'll just stabilise us, and I'll be right there," he promised. She nodded and turned to go, but then paused in the doorway.

"He's gonna be all right, Doctor. We're gonna help him remember, and he's gonna be all right. You'll see."

Then she was gone, leaving him alone once more.

The Doctor waited until he could no longer hear her footsteps, and then slipped his hand into his jacket pocket and brought out the item he'd found on display in the warehouse earlier that day. Almost reverently, he turned the item over his hands, and ran his fingers over the supple leather. He hoped it would be possible to kickstart Jack's memories, using certain triggers, and the one he held in his hands promised to be possibly the best trigger of all. He dared not use it, though, until he felt Jack was mentally and emotionally ready to deal with what were potentially severely traumatic memories.

One step at a time he told himself.

Slipping the Vortex Manipulator back into the safe depths of his jacket pocket, the Doctor made one last check of the TARDIS' status before heading off to the med room to see to the wellbeing of his former companion.

* * *

_to be continued..._


	28. Aftermath

The Doctor had barely left the control room of the TARDIS when the sound of terrified screams reached his ears. He broke into a run, and the TARDIS herself aided his expediency by moving the medical room closer to him.

The scene that he came upon just about broke his hearts, and had him wanting to weep. Rather than finding Jack waiting for him on one of the beds, the young immortal was instead huddling in the far corner of the room, screaming and crying hysterically, and slapping his hands wildly at anyone who tried to get close to him. Even Ianto hadn't come away unscathed, judging by the deep red welt on his cheek.

"What's going on?" he asked of no one in particular.

"He panicked," Gage answered, sounding confused and a little frightened. "As soon as we brought him in here, he freaked out. I have no idea why! None of us can get anywhere near him, not even Ianto!"

The Doctor hesitated, staring at his hysterical former companion with growing concern. He knew well enough that if Ianto couldn't calm Jack down, then there was no point in him trying. He was trying to decide what the best course of action to take was – sedation was out of the question, as it would only delay the inevitable, not to mention it would possibly only cause Jack even further trauma on top of what he'd already suffered – when the TARDIS whispered to his mind, offering a possible solution.

He listened, intrigued, before speaking to the others.

"Everyone, back off. Let him have some space."

"Doctor?" Rose asked anxiously. "What are you going to do?"

"Not me," he answered. "The TARDIS."

Understanding dawned in Rose's eyes, and she quickly moved right back. Ianto and Gage exchanged worried glances before reluctantly doing the same. Ianto, however, positioned himself near the door. The last thing they needed was for a panicked and frightened Jack to be running off and getting lost in the bowels of a ship that was obviously a hell of a lot bigger than outside appearances suggested.

"What's going on?" Gage asked in confusion.

"The TARDIS is talking to Jack," Rose murmured. "See, she's not just a ship. She's sentient, got a mind of her own. Listen, can you hear her?"

"I can't hear anything," Gage admitted, but Ianto nodded slowly.

"I think I can hear a sort of hum, like it's in the back of my mind. Is that her?"

"It is," the Doctor confirmed, pleased.

"And she's talking to Jack right now?"

"Just wait, and watch," the Doctor told him.

So they did, and over the next few minutes they watched as Jack's tears slowed and eventually stopped. He very gradually relaxed from the tight huddle that his body had been locked into, until he sat slumped against the wall, with his cheek pressed lightly to the coral. Eventually, they became away of Jack humming softly to a song that only he seemed to be able to hear.

"Doctor?" Rose asked finally. "What's she sayin' to him?"

"I don't know," the Doctor admitted, sounding surprised but not especially put-out. "She's blocked all of us listening in, including me. Whatever she's saying, it's for Jack alone."

Slowly, Jack turned on the floor where he sat, huddling closer to the wall. His hand came up to lightly stroke the coral, and a tiny smile graced his features.

"Ianto, she wants you to go to him now," the Doctor said. Ianto didn't need to be told twice. He walked over and crouched down beside Jack, slipping and arm around his shoulders.

"She says I need to let her help me," Jack mumbled. "She says she'll take away the ouches."

"Yes, she will, love. Are you going to let her do that for you?"

Jack didn't answer verbally, but instead allowed Ianto to help him get up. Ianto guided him over to the med table, and encouraged him to lie down. As soon as he had done so, a soft blue light engulfed him for perhaps ten seconds at the most. When it faded, the wires that had been cruelly embedded in his flesh were gone, and there was no sign they had ever been there to begin with.

Jack was not the only one to benefit from the TARDIS' care, either. Similar blue light also swept over Ianto, Gage, Rose, and even the Doctor, cleaning them and healing them of any injuries that they had.

"Better?" Ianto asked with a smile as Jack sat up again and examined his body in wonder.

"Better," Jack agreed happily.

"Good. Now, maybe we can find some clothes for you."

And suddenly, the uncertainty was back with a vengeance as Jack remembered that he wasn't supposed to have no clothes on.

"I'm sorry," he offered to Ianto, genuinely upset. "I didn't mean to, Yan. Really…"

Anxious to comfort and reassure him, Ianto hugged him and pressed a kiss to his temple.

"It's all right, cariad. No one is angry with you, and you haven't done anything wrong, I promise. We just want you to feel comfortable and warm."

Much to the Doctor and Rose's interest, Jack's face had gone flame red as he realised that everyone's attention was on him, and he shifted awkwardly on the table, trying uselessly to hide his nakedness. Taking pity on the man, the Doctor turned and bustled both Rose and Gage towards the door.

"Ianto, there are clothes on the end of the bed," he said over his shoulder. "Don't worry about sizes, the TARDIS will have that covered. When you're done, she'll show you to his room. Once you're both settled, I'll bring along something to eat and drink."

And then, Jack and Ianto were alone in the med room.

Curious, Ianto examined the clothes and was pleased to find a comfortable and loose pair of tracksuit pants, plain loose-fitting tee-shirt and a warm sweatshirt, as well as a simple, plain pair of boxers. On the floor was a comfortable-looking pair of slippers and, just as the Doctor had said, everything was in just the right sizes.

"C'mon, then," he said, and helped Jack get the clothes on so that they could both feel comfortable again.

"Can you tell me why you got so upset when we came in here?" Ianto asked gently as he helped Jack to tug the sweatpants up over his hips. Jack glanced about nervously.

"I… I thought…"

He trailed off, embarrassed.

"You thought what?" Ianto asked. "Talk to me, Jack, please."

"It reminded me of the other place," Jack blurted out. "Like the bad place. I thought that… maybe…"

"That it was all just a trick?" Ianto suggested gently, and Jack stared down wordlessly at his hands, ashamed and embarrassed. Ianto hugged him reassuringly. "It's all right, love. No one is mad at you."

"But I slapped you," Jack pointed out shakily, watery eyes fixed on the angry red welt that adorned Ianto's cheek. Ianto laid a palm lightly against Jack's face, and directed him to look away from the mark.

"You were frightened and confused. It's understandable, and no harm was done. You didn't hurt me, Jack. It looks worse than it really is, and I promise you it'll fade pretty quickly. You don't have any reason to be ashamed, I promise you."

"She said that, too."

"She?"

Again, Jack looked around, and smiled tentatively at the coral walls.

"TARDIS."

Ianto looked as well, and again was conscious of that gentle hum in his mind.

"You can hear her, can't you?" he asked curiously. "In your head?"

"She's talking to me," Jack said softly, sounding awestruck. "I can hear her. She's telling me not to be scared. She sounds pretty."

The young Welshman smiled at the innocent words. He didn't fully understand how it was possible for a ship to communicate like that, but the bottom line was that the TARDIS had calmed Jack's fears, and taken away his pain. For that alone, Ianto was immensely grateful.

Recalling what the Doctor had said about Jack's room, Ianto finished helping him to get dressed, and urged him gently towards the door.

"How about we go and find your room, then?"

Happy and content for the time being, with recent traumas pushed firmly to the back of his mind, Jack allowed Ianto to lead him from the med room.

* * *

Only minutes previous, the Doctor herded Gage and Rose out of the med room, and away down the corridor.

"Let's just give them a little bit of space," the Doctor murmured when Rose tried to protest.

"All right," Rose conceded, in somewhat reluctantly. "It's just… you know, kind of hard to believe it's the same bloke. The Jack we took on board wouldn't have ever been embarrassed about bein' naked."

"The Jack we took on board may never come back," the Doctor warned her quietly. "There is no way to know whether that part of his personality is gone permanently. Our priority now is helping Jack to recover, and we just have to take it one step at a time. We have to be prepared that the man back there may be very different to the one we knew. But for now, we'll just let the TARDIS take care of him. We'll let her take care of them both."

"She really is sentient, isn't she?" Gage asked, looking around him in wonder as they walked. The Doctor beamed with pleasure at Gage's acceptance.

"Yes, she is. Welcome to the TARDIS, Mr Adams. The best ship in the universe, and the last one of her kind."

Gage paused in his stride to brush his fingers reverently over the coral walls.

"I'm sorry I can't hear you, you beautiful thing, but I'm glad to be here anyway."

The Doctor's expression turned bemused.

"Keep that up, and you'll give Jack a run for his money."

Gage frowned, sensing another slight aimed at Jack, but when he looked around at the Doctor there was nothing mean in the Time Lord's expression – only fond reminiscence.

"What do you mean?" Gage asked, taking care to keep his tone neutral.

"When Jack first came on board," Rose explained, "the Doctor told him to behave himself, or he'd find himself on the wrong side of an airlock. Only trouble with that was that within twenty-four hours, Jack had flirted and charmed his way into the TARDIS' good books. The Doctor couldn't have gotten rid of him then even if he'd wanted to."

Gage smiled faintly, and opted not to comment on the fact that the Doctor clearly had found a way in the end to rid himself of Jack.

"I wasn't entirely serious about the airlock," the Doctor mused. "After all, whose idea was it to rescue the good Captain off his precious Chula ship?"

Rose rolled her eyes, and Gage got the impression that this was a discussion that had been held more than once in the past.

"Yours."

"Thankyou." He looked back to Gage, with a smile on his face at the memories. "Jack was the second tag-along that we'd picked up. The first bloke was a big mistake, and caused far more trouble than he was worth. Jack, though… Jack was something special. He just needed a chance, and the right encouragement. I didn't trust him when we first met him, because he was trying to con us, but he had something the other idiot didn't. Jack had a capacity and a willingness to learn and change. Once he realised and accepted that he'd made a mistake, he did what he had to in order to fix it, and I loved him for that."

Gage was left feeling slightly stunned, not only by the Doctor's words, but also by his tone. There was an emotion in the Time Lord's voice that the younger man had not expected to hear. There was pride, respect and above all, love.

"You really do care about him, don't you?" Gage asked, and the Doctor nodded fiercely.

"I love Jack, just as I loved all my companions. What happened to him on Satellite Five was not his fault, and I made a terrible mistake in never going back for him. I just hope that one day he'll be able to forgive me."

"Couldn't you still do that? Go back for him, I mean."

"I wish I could, but it's not that simple. Everything that's happened here has become part of established events, including Jack's captivity over the last hundred or so years. It can't be changed."

They halted again by a door that slid open to reveal a simply furnished, but comfortable looking room.

"Your room, Mr Adams, for as long as you care to stay."

Gage paused in the doorway, and looked back at the Doctor and Rose with renewed hope.

"It's over, isn't it? We never have to worry about Torchwood again?"

The Doctor's expression was sober as he answered.

"I won't guarantee that Torchwood is finished, but I promise that right here and right now, you're all safe. And if you like, I'll be happy to take you somewhere that Torchwood has never been heard of."

Gage smiled, and shook his head.

"No, it's okay. And it's not me that I'm worried about. I just want Jack and Ianto to be safe."

"They will be," the Doctor promised sincerely.

"Well, that's good enough for me," Gage said. "Thankyou, Doctor… and you too, Rose."

Once Gage had disappeared into his room, Rose rounded on the Doctor.

"What do you mean, 'will be'? Why didn't you say they are safe?"

"They're safe from Torchwood, yes," the Doctor agreed as he led the way to the kitchen. "But Jack is still at risk from UNIT. I want it to be that if for any reason Jack decides to return to twenty-first century Earth, that he's not going to be locked up all over again."

"How are you going to do that, then? You know someone in UNIT?"

"Several, actually. But no, that wasn't what I had in mind. When Jack's settled in a little better, I'm going to take him to meet someone who has the power to make sure UNIT never lays a hand on Jack, ever."

"You gonna tell me who this VIP is?" Rose pressed. The Doctor grinned widely at her.

"Her Majesty, the Queen of England."

* * *

The Doctor was just finishing putting together a tray of food and drink for Jack and Ianto – Rose had already delivered a similar tray to Gage – when she finally gave in to her curiosity and spoke.

"Let me get this straight. Queen Victoria banished you…"

"She banished you, too, don't forget," the Doctor reminded her. Rose pulled a face.

"Fine. She banished us and set up Torchwood, and you're going to take Jack to meet one of her descendents?"

"Queen Elizabeth is a different prospect entirely compared to Queen Victoria," the Doctor said. "I've known her ever since she was a young girl, and I think I can safely say that we're quite good friends. Jack won't have anything to fear from her."

"You really think she'll protect Jack from UNIT?"

"Without a doubt, but I want to do this as soon as possible, before the Captain starts to regain any of his old personality."

Rose frowned, feeling herself immediately go on the defensive on Jack's behalf.

"Why's that?"

The Doctor finished filling the tray, and turned to look at her seriously.

"Think, Rose. When you first met Jack, how did he make you feel?"

The blush that coloured Rose's cheeks at those memories answered his question better than any words could have done.

"Exactly," he confirmed. "When you look at Jack now, though, what's your first reaction?"

The blush rapidly faded, and tears stung Rose's eyes.

"I just wanna hug him, and tell him everything's gonna be okay. I wanna keep him from ever getting hurt again."

The Doctor smiled as understanding dawned in her eyes.

"Exactly. We're going to take advantage of Jack's current state of mind just this once. Then, hopefully, he'll never have to worry about Torchwood or UNIT ever again."

* * *

Ianto honestly hadn't known what to expect when they finally came to Jack's room, but to say he was surprised would have been an understatement. Of course, he had no way of knowing what Jack's room had originally been like, but the sight of it right then was more than sufficient to erase any doubts he might have still been harbouring about the ship.

It was as though the TARDIS had looked directly into Jack's mind, and decorated the room accordingly. The room was filled with vibrant colours, creating a cheerful atmosphere that was such a stark contrast to the bleak little room in Secure Archives.

There were two beds side-by-side. One was covered in more sedate shades of brown and blue, but the other matched its surrounding with its brightness. And if the colours weren't enough to tell them whose bed it was, the sight of two familiar items sitting on the pillow washed away all remaining doubt.

Jack uttered a wordless cry of delight and charged over to his own bed, snatching up his blanket in one arm and the toy dog in the other. Then, sitting on the edge of the bed, he cuddled both to his chest in contentment. Ianto watched, astounded. He didn't know whether either item had come from, and to be honest, he'd completely forgotten about both. His only explanation was that somehow, Jackie Tyler must have brought them on board with her. If that was the case, Ianto was even more thankful for the good woman who had taken them both in.

"Look!" Jack exclaimed joyfully, and Ianto smiled.

"I know, Jack. I see them."

"TARDIS put them in here," Jack stated confidently. Ianto didn't think for a second to dispute the claim. He simply smiled, and stroked the closest section of wall.

"Thankyou. He needs every bit of comfort that he can get."

Though he couldn't make out words, or even really make any sense of it, he was sure he could feel the ship hum her agreement back to him. Any further attempts to communicate, though, were put on hold when the door slid open to reveal Rose standing there with a near to over-flowing tray. She paused just inside the threshold of the room, her eyes wide as she took in the over-bright décor.

"Wow. This is… different."

"Jack likes lots of colours," Ianto said simply, by way of explanation. Rose's look of astonishment faded, and she smiled warmly at both men.

"So I see. Now, I hope you're both hungry."

Ianto watched as she set the tray down, giving them both an eyeful of the food that adorned it. There were sandwiches, fruit, pastries, a large jug of juice and a thermos.

"Coffee, for you," Rose explained, handing Ianto the flask. "Apparently the TARDIS thought you'd prefer it to tea. Sent the Doctor into a right tizz, it did."

Ianto chuckled as he unscrewed the top, and he all-but salivated at the aroma that filled his nostrils.

"Thankyou," he murmured in gratitude. Meanwhile, Jack had ventured over to the table, and was peering at the selection with interest. His stomach growled loudly, telling both Ianto and Rose just how hungry he was. Rose laughed, and patted the back of one of the chairs.

"C'mon, then. Come and sit down and eat something. You're gonna have to put those things down, though..."

Rose started backwards a moment later, though, when Jack snarled openly when she tried to take his blanket and dog off him.

"Jack!" Ianto exclaimed in shock, and Jack promptly sank into the seat at the table, his eyes fixed sullenly on the table top.

"S'okay," Rose murmured, but Ianto shook his head.

"No. It's not. Jack, tell Rose you're sorry. Say it and mean it, or there'll be no fruit for you tonight."

It was an empty threat. Given that Jack probably had eaten nothing for over twenty-four hours, Ianto had no intention of making him go without. It had the desired effect, though, and Jack looked up at Rose with a contrite expression and watery eyes.

"I'm sorry."

Rose crouched in front of him, and smiled up at him reassuringly, while trying to suppress her own uncertainties.

"Apology accepted. But you know, I wasn't gonna take 'em away from you. I was just gonna put 'em back on your bed while you ate. Wouldn't want to get 'em all sticky and covered in food, would you?"

By then, Jack was looking very sheepish over his outburst.

"I'm sorry," he apologised again. "I was silly, wasn't I?"

"Yes, you were, but it's understandable," Ianto said gently. "I can only guess how exhausted you must be by now. How about we have something to eat, and then we'll get you ready for bed?"

Jack started to protest that he wasn't tired, only to be stymied by a jaw-popping yawn. Ianto couldn't help but laugh at the sight.

"I thought as much."

Jack looked down at his dog and blanket, still in a quandary over what to do with them.

"I have an idea," Rose suggested. "Jack, may I have your blanket for just a minute? I promise not to take it away."

He handed it over with obvious reluctance, and Rose took it over and spread it lovingly over Jack's bed. The torn and scruffy blanket looked out of place, but the smile it put on Jack's face was well worth it. She then took the toy dog and sat it on a third chair at the table that Ianto hadn't even noticed was there.

"There you go," Rose declared, and Jack positively beamed at her.

"Thankyou, Rose."

She leaned in and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"Anything for you, Jack."

Oblivious to the sudden emotion in her voice, Jack reached eagerly for a large, red apple on the tray, and promptly began to devour it noisily and messily.

"You're right," Ianto commented ruefully. "He would have had the blanket covered in apple juice in minutes." He paused, glancing quizzically at her when she said nothing. "Are you all right?"

Rose tried to smile, but couldn't quite pull it off.

"Sorry. Just never quite pictured him needin' a security blanket, is all. Doesn't quite go with how I remember him, you know?" She turned away abruptly, tears stinging her eyes, and Ianto stepped in and gently wrapped his arms around her in a comforting hug. She slumped against him, sniffling miserably. "I think it just hit how badly he's been damaged, and it's our fault."

"Thinking like that isn't going to help Jack," Ianto told her quietly. "He's just regressed to a state of mind where he can cope with everything that's happened to him. It doesn't mean it's a permanent situation. And as for the blanket, there is a story behind it, but I won't go into it now. Right now, I'd just like to see that he has a decent meal, and gets some sleep. If we're lucky, he might just be too tired to have any nightmares."

Rose pulled out of Ianto's arms, her own distress forgotten in the light of that revelation.

"He have a lot of them?"

"Regularly," Ianto confirmed. "The content varies... You can probably imagine that there are a lot of things that have happened to him to cause him to have nightmares."

"And now there's what happened today as well," Rose murmured sympathetically. "Be lucky if any of us get through tonight without any nightmares."

Ianto fought down a shudder as his thoughts went briefly to Lisa, and her terrible fate. She hadn't been wrong when she'd said that he didn't love her anymore, but he would never have wished such an end on her. He knew, without a doubt, that his own dreams would be plagued that night, and perhaps for many nights to come.

* * *

The Doctor hovered in the control room, trying with little success to focus on the panel he had open. His companions, both old and new, were all asleep but none of them were peaceful. Nightmares of varying intensity plagued all of them, but the Doctor was more than a little surprised to discover that Ianto, not Jack, was the worst affected. He tried to reach out to the young man in an effort to see what was disturbing him so much, and possibly soothe his mind, but he couldn't get through the Welshman's natural shields.

Or, he mused, it was more a case of the TARDIS actively keeping him out of the young man's thoughts and dreams.

He was just on the cusp of wondering what was being kept from him when Ianto settled once more into a dreamless slumber. Not all was peaceful, though, and the Doctor soon realised that Jack was not only awake, but wandering the corridors of the TARDIS. After just a brief moment's indecision, the Doctor went to find his former companion.

* * *

Jack was not woken by his own nightmares, but rather by Ianto's muffled screams of distress. For several long seconds, Jack sat frozen in bed, not knowing what he should do. Heart-breaking sobs broke his paralysis, though, and he climbed out of bed and went to his Ianto's side. He took a moment to consider what he should do, not wanting to wake Ianto up if he could help it. After all, Jackie had told him that Ianto needed sleep, and that he shouldn't wake him up. On the other hand, though, watching Ianto crying in his sleep made Jack want to cry as well.

Slowly, Jack remembered the many times that he had woken to find Ianto holding him close. On those times, Jack had generally found that he had no clear memory of his nightmares. Anything that did remain were effectively washed away by the sensation of being held by someone who he knew loved him. Therefore, Jack concluded in his own simple way, surely it would make Ianto feel better to be held as well.

His decision made, Jack climbed out of his bed and lay down on Ianto's. Taking as much care as he could, Jack put his arms around Ianto and hugged him close.

At first, Ianto tensed in his hold and distressed sobs escaped his lips. Jack held on to him, though, and rubbed his hands up and down Ianto's back, copying what he remembered Ianto so often doing for him. Gradually, Ianto's sobs lessened and his struggles eased, and before long he relaxed fully in Jack's embrace. Peace claimed his features, erasing the lines of distress and grief that had marred his young face, and he settled again with a quiet sigh.

Jack watched him for several minutes, assuring himself that Ianto was, indeed, sleeping peacefully, before easing himself off the bed. He'd intended to go back to bed, but his attention was inadvertently drawn away from the welcoming comfort of his bed, to the door of the room.

He'd been afraid he'd come on board, worried that it was all somehow just a trick. Though the ship had seemed familiar to him, he had no clear memories of her to ease his fears. The one thing he did remember with painful clarity was the sight of the blue box disappearing and leaving him behind with only dead bodies for company.

He felt a whisper in his mind, a heartfelt apology that he felt compelled to accept. Then, the door suddenly slid open, inviting him to venture out into the corridor beyond. He felt the whisper in his mind again, telling him it was okay, and promising that he was safe. He knew of no reason not to believe it.

With a glance at Ianto to ensure he was still sleeping peacefully, Jack collected his blanket from the bed and padded silently from the room.

* * *

The Doctor came upon Jack not far from the entrance to the garden. The young immortal was standing in a pair of blue satin pyjamas, leaning against the wall of the TARDIS. His eyes were shut and he was humming softly. She was singing to him again, the Doctor realised with more than just a hint of fondness. It seemed he was not alone in his desire to make amends.

He approached slowly, not wanting to frighten Jack in any way.

"Hello, Jack," he said gently. Jack jumped visibly and stumbled a little as he swung around to face the Doctor.

"I'm sorry," he blurted out in obvious panic. The Doctor held his hands up and spoke in as soothing a tone as he could manage.

"It's all right, Jack. You aren't doing anything wrong. There's no need to say sorry."

Jack shifted uneasily. He looked as flighty as a spooked rabbit, the Doctor thought sadly. As spooked rabbit that had no idea which direction to bolt in.

"I'm supposed to be asleep," he mumbled, his hand wringing the blanket nervously. "Ianto will be mad at me. I'm not supposed to wander off on my own."

"Well, you're with me, so you're not technically on your own, are you?"

Jack's face creased into a frown, as though he was trying to find a loophole in the Doctor's logic. He wasn't able to, and reluctantly conceded.

"No. I guess not."

The Doctor regarded Jack thoughtfully, considering how he could begin to encourage Jack to relax around him. In the end, the TARDIS took matters into her own proverbial hands and opened a door a little ways down the corridor. Warm, inviting light spilled into the corridor, attracting the attention of both men.

A smile lit up the Doctor's face, and he held a hand out to Jack in invitation.

"Come with me. I think the TARDIS would like to show you something."

Jack stared down at the Doctor's outstretched hand with obvious trepidation. The Doctor merely waited, though, showing no hint of impatience. Finally, tentatively, Jack placed his hand in the Doctor's.

Smiling a little more widely than before, the Doctor led Jack down the corridor and through the open doorway.

* * *

During Jack's original, and rather short time in the TARDIS, there were many places in the ship that he simply had not had time to discover. The garden was one of those places, and so the Doctor could be sure that regardless of what memories Jack possessed, this was an entirely new experience for him.

It quickly became clear that the TARDIS had gone all out for her long, lost Jack. The garden was more lush and fragrant than the Doctor could remember it being for a very long time, and there were a number of new features that he was certain were primarily for Jack's benefit.

For his part, Jack stared about him in open-mouthed amazement.

"Is this outside?" he asked almost reverently. The Doctor easily picked up the undertones, and wondered just when the last time was that Jack had been able to enjoy a day out in the sun without anything to fear.

"No, not exactly," he explained. He paused, taking a moment to consider his words, while at the same time reminding himself that this Jack was not at the same level mentally or emotionally as the rogue time agent he'd met in London during the Blitz. "We're still in the TARDIS. This is her garden. She's created it to be like an outdoor garden, so it's like being outside without actually going outside. Quite useful, when you're in the vortex, and stepping out for a breath of fresh air isn't really an option." He paused yet again, acutely conscious that he was starting to ramble. "Do you like it?"

Jack didn't answer immediately. Drawing away from the Doctor a little, he sank to his knees and reached down to thread his hands through the cool grass.

"It feels real," he said softly in wonder. The Doctor couldn't resist an amused smile.

"That's because it is. Everything you see here is real, Jack. Some of it is from Earth. Some is from other worlds that I've visited. All of it is very real, and I promise you, nothing here can hurt you."

He watched with affection as Jack leaned down to smell a rose, and then lay down fully on the grass and hummed softly – a sound that the Doctor was quickly coming to recognise as a sign of contentment. It was a good thing, for now there was somewhere special that Jack could go, and the Doctor wouldn't need to take the TARDIS out of the vortex before time.

"You can come here whenever you like," the Doctor told him. "You don't need to ask permission. Just tell the TARDIS that you want to come here, and she'll show you the way."

Abruptly, Jack rolled over and sat up, uncertainty in his eyes.

"I have to ask Yan. I always have to ask Yan. He'll get mad if he doesn't know where I am."

"You really don't like him being upset with you, do you?" the Doctor mused, and Jack shook his head ferociously.

"Yan takes care of me. I have to be good for him. I love him."

The statement took the Doctor by surprise with its honest simplicity. He stared into Jack's blue eyes, and saw nothing there but the truth.

"I believe you do," he murmured. "Well, then. Shall we get you back to bed, so that Ianto doesn't wake up and wonder where you've gone."

Jack nodded. His deep-set need to behave for his beloved Ianto override desire to stay longer in the marvellous garden.

"We'll tell Ianto about the garden tomorrow," the Doctor promised him. "So then you'll be able to come any time you like, and not have Ianto worrying after you. All right?"

"Okay," Jack agreed, content with the offered suggestion. The Doctor held his hand out to Jack again, and was both surprised and pleased when Jack accepted it.

"C'mon, then. Let's get you back to bed."

Jack followed in silent contentment, whilst the Doctor struggled suddenly to hold back tears as he wondered again whether the damage done to Jack's mind was permanent. He hoped it wasn't the case, but he wondered all the same.

Another thing that hadn't escaped his attention was the irony of the fact that he was actually missing the innuendos that the Jack of old would have been throwing out thick and fast by then. He said nothing, though, and merely led his happily oblivious companion back to the security of his room and the comfort of his own bed.

* * *

_to be continued..._


	29. Return & Reassurance

Come the next morning, Ianto had barely made it out of bed before a hyper-excited Jack was telling him all about a so-called marvellous garden that was located somewhere within the ship. He had a world of trouble getting Jack washed and dressed, because the older man would not cease wriggling in his excitement.

As he tried to get a tee-shirt over Jack's head – again, clothes that the TARDIS had supplied – he finally managed to get in the question that he was itching to ask ever since Jack first started talking about the garden.

"Tell me something, Jack. Do you remember it from when you were on the TARDIS the last time, or is there another reason that you're suddenly so excited about it?"

The speed with which Jack stilled was almost frightening. Ianto took a slow step back and raised an eyebrow in mild amusement. He knew that look all too well. It was the look that Jack routinely wore when he'd something wrong, and didn't want to own up to it.

"Look at me, Jack."

Slowly, Jack raised his eyes to meet Ianto's.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, tears welling in his eyes. "I didn't mean to. It just happened, but she told me it was okay, and she was singing to me, and…"

"Whoa!" Ianto said with a short laugh, smiling warmly at his charge to reassure him that he wasn't in the least bit angry. He reached up and brushed a rogue lock of hair out of Jack's eyes before soothing his thumb over Jack's forehead and temple. "Slow down, all right? Why don't you tell me what you did before we decide if it was wrong or not."

"I left our room," Jack admitted meekly. "It was when you were asleep. I… I woke up, and you were crying and yelling in your sleep. I didn't know what else to do, so I lay down next to you and cuddled you. Like you do for me when I have bad dreams. I was going to go back to bed when you stopped crying, but the door opened, and the TARDIS wanted me to go for a walk. So… I did. Was I bad?"

It was turning into a standard question that made Ianto want to weep. Jack was so desperate to be good – a product of their time hiding out from Torchwood, where Ianto had drilled it into his head that doing certain things was bad. It wasn't going to be easy to break Jack of that mindset now, but he had to try.

Shaking his head, he leaned forward and pressed a tender kiss to Jack's forehead.

"No, Jack. You weren't bad. I can see we're going to have to have a talk about what you can or can't do now. Things have changed again, love, and you don't need to ask my permission anymore to wander around… although, I expect there are probably some places here that the Doctor would prefer you didn't get into, and I'd prefer it if you didn't get yourself lost."

"She wouldn't let me," Jack stated with absolute confidence.

"Well, I can't say that I understand," Ianto conceded, "but I trust you. After all, you do know more about her than I do, even if you don't consciously remember. Now, how about we go and get some breakfast? I'm assuming there is a kitchen here somewhere?"

Jack frowned a little, as though trying hard to remember. He was still thinking when the door slid open, and Rose peeked in.

"Figured you had to be up and dressed. Don't think the TARDIS would've let me in, otherwise. Anyway, the Doctor asked me to come and check, and see if you were ready to come and get breakfast."

"We are," Ianto confirmed for the both of them.

"C'mon, then. I'll take you to the kitchen."

* * *

"Exactly how big is this ship?" Ianto wondered as Rose led them along the corridor. The question provoked an amused laugh from her.

"Couldn't you have thought of something easier to ask? Seriously, I've been with the Doctor for two years now, and I've only seen a fraction of the TARDIS. Now the Doctor, he's over nine hundred years old, and I don't think even he's seen every room."

"She's bigger on the inside," Jack said suddenly, and Rose smiled up at him in pleased surprise.

"Yeah, that's right, Jack. That's really good."

Jack beamed at the praise and puffed up with pleasure, causing Rose to giggle. Ianto chuckled, and encouraged him to keep walking.

"C'mon, you big goose."

"Honk," Jack offered, causing Rose to explode into full-blown laughter. Ianto merely grinned and rolled his eyes.

The Doctor and Gage were already in the kitchen when they arrived, and both Rose and the Time Lord watched with open curiosity as Jack literally bounded across the floor and wrapped Gage up in a ferocious hug. The other man was clearly used to it, for he returned the hug willingly, and accepted a loud, wet kiss on the lips as though it was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Good morning to you, too, sweetheart," Gage greeted him with a fond smile.

"Good morning, Gage," Jack responded cheerfully. Gage chuckled and ruffled his hair.

"Go on, sit down. I'll bring you some toast and eggs."

Jack turned to do so, only to find himself directly in the Doctor's line of sight. He shifted stance, suddenly nervous. All movement seemed to still in the room, as Ianto, Gage and Rose all watched to see what would happen.

Aware that he was possibly being judged on more than one level, the Doctor approached Jack calmly, and smiled at him.

"Good morning, Jack."

"Good morning," Jack answered quietly. His gaze flickered up briefly to meet the Doctor's eyes, and then back down again. Any confidence that he'd regained after their night time visit to the garden seemed to have evaporated, and he once more appeared nervous and skittish in the Doctor's presence.

"Did you tell Ianto about what I showed you last night?" the Doctor asked, taking care to keep his voice neutral.

It was like throwing a switch. All of a sudden, given something new to focus on, Jack's face lit up like a beacon and he launched into a fresh ramble about the TARDIS' wonderful garden.

"Nice one," Rose murmured as a bemused Ianto guided his exuberant charge to a chair. The Doctor grinned faintly.

"I'll say. Once he gets going, he's worse than me."

Rose slapped him lightly on the arm, and went to join them at the table. Jack, she noted, had a firm hold on his blanket, but the toy dog was nowhere in sight. As she watched, Ianto murmured something to Jack, and the other man obligingly draped the slightly ragged material over his lap so that it was out of the way.

Again, Rose reminded herself to ask exactly what the significance of the blanket was, and at the same time hoped she wasn't opening up a can of worms that really ought to be left shut. Her curiosity was too strong, though, and she approached Ianto when he went to make himself a cup of coffee.

"So, are you gonna tell me what's with the blanket?" she queried. Ianto glanced back over his shoulder at Jack, who was waiting patiently, if somewhat eagerly, for Gage to bring his breakfast.

"When I first met Jack, he had nothing. The clothes he wore were barely enough to cover him. He didn't even have an identity. I was calling him Joe, until he remembered his name was Jack. To start with, I couldn't do anything for him because I was being too closely watched. But then the Director gave me open slather to do whatever I felt necessary for him. Mind you, it wasn't out of the goodness of her heart, and I think she regretted it later, but I held her to her word. The first time I officially went shopping for food for him… the slop they were forcing him to eat wasn't worth using for landfill… I found a camping bed in a store, and I bought it for him, along with a pillow and blanket. It wasn't much, but after a hundred years of sleeping on a bare concrete floor, it probably felt like the lap of luxury. It was all good, but then I got sick with the flu and I was off work for a week. When I got back, my bastard supervisor…"

"The bloke the Daleks killed?" Rose wondered, and Ianto nodded.

"Right, the one who tried to run for it. Well, he let another bloke take away everything I'd given Jack. When I came back after being sick, all Jack had left was that blanket. It was torn, and pretty much useless, but he'd fought to hang on to it, even when just about every bone in his hand was broken. I suppose I could wax lyrical and say that the blanket was a visible reminder to him that he could still fight back, but that would be a lie. The truth is, I think it was just something tangible to hold on to. And then, he just never wanted to let it go. It means something to him, and I won't be the one to take it off him."

"And nor will we," the Doctor said, startling Ianto somewhat with his sudden appearance at Rose's side. He hadn't realised that the Time Lord had even been listening.

"So, what's the plan of action now?" Rose wondered.

"I think a little trip back to Earth is in order," the Doctor said with a smile.

Rose looked startled at that, as did Ianto.

"Already? I thought we would've stayed here in the vortex a lot longer."

"Oh, it's just going to be a quick visit," the Doctor assured them. "I just thought that there's someone back on Earth who would appreciate knowing that you and Jack are safe, Ianto."

"Sarah Jane," Ianto murmured in realisation, and the Doctor nodded.

"Exactly."

"I'd appreciate that, Doctor," Ianto murmured. "And I know that Jack will also. I was wondering, though. My parents are going to think I'm dead."

His distress at that was painfully clear, and the Doctor responded with a sympathetic smile and a pat on the shoulder.

"I'm afraid you may need to wait just a little longer to see them, but you can certainly call them, if you like. Rose will lend you her phone."

A sheepish look filled Rose's face.

"Yeah, about that…"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow in her direction.

"Do I want to know what happened?"

"It was broken yesterday," Ianto answered, saving Rose the necessity of trying to explain to the clearly sceptical Time Lord. "It wasn't Rose's fault. Look, Doctor, please. I just want to visit them for an hour, so they can see I'm all right. I haven't been in contact with them since I started taking care of Jack. That's nearly six months ago now!"

"Go on," Rose growled lightly at him. "Say yes. It won't hurt, surely."

The Doctor wasn't going to give in quite so easily, though, and he regarded Ianto with a severe look.

"You do realise that UNIT will be looking for Jack? It's entirely likely that they know you're connected to him, and they might have your parents under surveillance."

Ianto paled slightly.

"I hadn't thought of that," he admitted. "I suppose you're right… I'll just have to wait."

At the sight of the young man's misery, the Doctor's expression softened.

"Now, don't look at me like that. I never said I wouldn't take you. I just want you to be aware of the risks. Look, first to Sarah Jane, and then we'll stop by and see your parents. Just a brief stop, mind you, and we'll need to find some way of keeping Jack occupied so that he doesn't notice you're gone. He's not ready to leave the TARDIS yet, and I don't want him thinking for a second that you've gone. He needs you, Ianto. You know that, don't you?"

Ianto looked past the Time Lord to the table, where Jack was engrossed in the scrambled eggs and toast that Gage had prepared for him. He felt a pang of sadness that was almost overwhelming, though he didn't really understand why.

"Yes, sir. I do know it, and I wouldn't do that to him. I've tried to make him understand that I can't stay with him forever, but he just doesn't seem to be able to cope with the idea of being on his own. I was hoping that it might have been a bit easier to sever ties once he was back with you, but it doesn't seem to have made any difference. He's still as reliant on me as he was before… maybe even more."

"One day at a time, Ianto," the Doctor told him gently. "We take just one day at a time. Now, how about we finish breakfast, and then we'll pay those visits to Sarah Jane and your parents… and one other little stop, while I'm thinking of it."

A weary smile warmed Ianto's face.

"Thankyou, Doctor."

The Doctor nodded as his attention returned to Jack.

"Then it'll be back into the vortex, so we can start helping Jack to hopefully find himself again."

* * *

Luke Smith knew his mother was worried. In the immediate aftermath of the Cybermen and Dalek invasion, she'd been nervous almost to the point of paranoia, although he couldn't for the life of him work out what she was so worried about. The monsters were gone, the so-called mighty Torchwood Institute was no more and everything was back to the way it should be.

Then, he'd overheard his mother talking on the phone to the Brigadier about Jack and Ianto, and Luke finally understood her fears. Then, the Brigadier had turned up on their doorstep that morning looking painfully tired and generally fed up.

According to the Brig, Jack and Ianto had been retaken by Torchwood a mere twenty-eight hours prior to the invasion – information that had been provided on the quiet by Sylvia, the Brig's friend inside Torchwood. Beyond that, they didn't know anything of the men's fates. UNIT had apparently scoured the ruins of Canary Wharf, and Ianto was neither listed among the survivors or the dead. He was marked as missing, presumed dead, and Jack was simply noted as missing.

The Brig had said that as far as he knew, Jack was not in UNIT hands. According to the sergeant who had lead the squad that was charged with finding and securing Jack, there had been no sign of him anywhere in Torchwood Tower. Luke knew that both the Brig and his mother both harboured suspicions about that, and neither of them doubted that if UNIT had taken custody of Jack, then only a very select few would know about it. On the other hand, it was also a possibility that Torchwood had smuggled Jack away somewhere before everything went to hell.

Now, they sat together in the kitchen, speculating over the multiple possibilities, while also resigning themselves to the likelihood that they would never know the truth.

Luke looked away, his mind drifting as his mother and the Brigadier's conversation moved inevitably towards more mundane matters, such as the tenuous political climate in the wake of the Canary Wharf disaster. And so it was that he heard what they both missed – the sound of grinding engines in the garden outside. It was a sound that Luke had not actually heard before, but he knew anyway from the countless times his mother had described it.

"It's him!" he burst out in excitement, running to the window to look out into the garden. "Mum, he's here!"

Sarah Jane joined him, frowning in disapproval at his outburst.

"Luke, what on earth are you… Oh my god…"

"What is it?" the Brigadier wondered, making no effort to extricate himself from his chair.

"It's the TARDIS," she answered, already heading for the door. "The Doctor is here."

She hurried out with Luke right on her heels. The Brigadier watched them go with wry amusement before getting up to amble out after them.

* * *

The Doctor emerged first, along with Rose, and a warm smile lit up his face at the sight of his former companion.

"Hello, Sarah Jane. And who's this?"

She slipped an arm somewhat protectively around Luke's shoulders.

"This is my son, Luke."

The Doctor's eyebrows shot up, but she just shook her head.

"Long story."

He accepted that without argument, and instead turned with a grin towards the third member of the welcoming party while Sarah Jane and Rose greeted each other.

"Brigadier. Long time, no see."

A smile quirked the Brigadier's lips as they shook hands.

"Indeed, Doctor. Tell me, is it a typical thing for you to get younger with each regeneration?"

A wide grin lit up the Doctor's face.

"It's good to see you too, Alistair."

"Doctor," Sarah Jane asked anxiously, "please tell us. Jack and Ianto. Did they find you?"

The grin softened into something considerably more heartfelt.

"They're both on board," he answered. "We came specifically so you could see they're all right, but you'll need to come on board yourselves. I don't ant to try and make Jack leave the TARDIS just yet, even to visit friends. He's not ready."

"So you really do know him, then," the Brigadier said in a tone that was just one step shy of accusation. The Doctor, to the surprise of all, made no attempt to evade the question.

"His name is Captain Jack Harkness. He was my companion, along with Rose, for the last four months or so of my previous regeneration, until we ended up in a battle against a fleet of Daleks in the year 200,100. Jack was killed trying to buy me more time to create a delta wave, but he was brought back to life. Now, he can't die."

"And you did leave him behind, didn't you?" Sarah Jane asked softly.

"Yes, I did, and I regret doing it, but I can't change it. All I can do now is try to help Jack, and make sure he isn't abandoned again."

"Well, finally," the Brigadier said quietly. "You're finally taking responsibility for the aftermath."

The Doctor nodded, and then motioned to the door of the TARDIS.

"Jack is in the gardens with Ianto and Gage. I'm sure he would love to see you."

"Do we have your word that we won't leave my garden?" Sarah Jane asked as she tightened her grip fractionally on Luke.

"I promise," the Time Lord answered seriously. Satisfied, Sarah Jane led the way into the TARDIS.

* * *

It wasn't entirely clear whether Sarah Jane remembered the way or whether the TARDIS was guiding them, but it took them only a few short minutes to reach their destination. The Doctor led the way in, and there they were all treated to a touching sight. Not too far away, Ianto was sitting leaning against the enormous leaves of a plant that looked more like it was cradling him. His eyes were closed, and he looked more relaxed than he had been for a long time. Nearby, Gage sat cross-legged in the soft, cool grass while he read from a thick book. And then, comfortably ensconced between the two men, Jack lay on his stomach with one hand dangling loosely in a small stream that ran past them.

"I don't remember a stream in here," Sarah Jane said in surprise.

"There wasn't, until now," the Doctor confirmed. "The old girl added that for Jack, along with a few extra features. She's determined that we're going to take better care of him this time."

"I should ruddy well hope so," the Brig grumbled.

At the sound of voices, Ianto opened his eyes, and a grin lit up his face when he saw who it was.

"Jack, look. See who's here."

Jack looked, and gasped loudly.

"Luke!"

Ianto chuckled as Jack scrambled to his feet and ran straight to the boy. He threw his arms around him jubilantly, and lifted Luke clean off the ground in his enthusiasm.

"Jack, put him down," Ianto said with a laugh. "You'll knock the wind out of him, you silly goose."

"Sorry," Jack apologised with a sheepish grin, and deposited Luke back on solid ground.

"It's all right," Luke reassured him. "And I'm happy to see you again, too, Jack."

"Me, too," Jack said happily. His gaze shifted finally to Sarah Jane, and he smiled shyly at her. "Hello."

Sarah Jane approached him and looked him over with a practised eye.

"Hello again, Jack. How are you?"

"I'm good," Jack answered, looking nervous and awkward – almost a complete turn-around from his exuberance of only moments ago. Ianto noted the Doctor and Rose exchanging curious looks, and wondered again just how different Jack's current behaviour was compared to when they'd known him. Meanwhile, Sarah Jane had decided she'd had enough of polite formalities.

"Oh, come here," she said, and pulled Jack into a hug, which he returned with enthusiasm.

"I hope you've been good for Ianto," she asked when they finally parted. Again, Jack looked awkward.

"I tried to be."

She smiled sympathetically, and looked over at Ianto.

"Well, Ianto, it seems things have worked out despite everything."

"Yes, thanks to you and everyone else who took a chance to help us," Ianto said, stepping up to hug her himself.

"It's good to see you both so relaxed, at any rate. Especially you, Ianto. You were a nervous wreck when I saw you last."

"Well, we're safe now," Ianto said with a tiny shrug. "Torchwood can't hurt Jack anymore, and UNIT aren't going to get their hands on him, either."

"Speaking of which," the Doctor spoke up, "Ianto, I don't believe you've met Brigadier Alistair Stewart-Lethbridge face to face."

To his credit, Ianto quickly recovered from the surprise and shook hands with the older man.

"Thankyou, sir, for all your help."

"It was my pleasure, lad, believe me. I'm just glad you're both all right. I saw what was left at Canary Wharf, and I feared the worst."

"We were lucky," Ianto agreed softly, all the while trying to rid himself of the persistent memories of Lisa.

"Yes, you were, and I hope you never forget it."

Ianto hesitated, his mind going to other friends whose fates he didn't know.

"Sir, would you happen to know whether particular people survived? Sylvia, for starters…"

The Brigadier's expression turned sombre and he answered quietly, confirming Ianto's fears.

"I'm sorry. She didn't make it."

Ianto shut his eyes against a sudden onset of vertigo. He had hoped and prayed so hard, and it was a rough blow to have to accept that the woman who was responsible for helping him out the initial stages of Jack's rescue was dead.

"Sir, how many survived?" Gage asked softly in an effort to draw the attention away from Ianto while he struggled to contain his grief. "Do you know?"

"Not counting yourselves," the Brigadier mused, "twenty-three. It will probably be less before long. Some of the survivors that UNIT found were suffering horrific injuries. Kindest thing for them now would be death."

"And about what Jack?" Rose asked. "Are UNIT gonna leave him alone?"

"As far as I know, UNIT have officially listed Jack as missing," the Brig replied. "Obviously, they won't mark him as presumed dead. The higher-ups know better. At this point in time, though, they have no idea where he is. To be honest, when I was told that to begin with, I had my suspicions that they really did have him and were keeping mum about it. It's a very big relief to know he's safe inside the TARDIS. I think now that the longer he's kept away from Earth, the better off he'll be."

"We have just two more stops to make after this one," the Doctor said, "and then we'll be away from Earth for a while. Cyntro Three, I think. Early thirty-fifth century. Somewhere nice and vibrant, and safe. I think we could all use a complete change of scenery."

"Fine," the Brig agreed dismissively. "Just as long as it's not Earth."

He looked to Jack, who was watching everyone warily – as though he knew he was somehow the focus of the conversation, but didn't understand how or why. He was distracted from the exchange, though, when Luke gently took his hand.

"Jack, would you like to show me your room?"

Jack looked hopefully at Ianto.

"Can I, Yan?"

"Of course you can," Ianto answered, and Jack all but dragged Luke from the garden in his eagerness.

"He's still very much a child mentally and emotionally," Sarah Jane mused quietly. "I have to admit, I wonder what he must have been like before Torchwood got a hold of him."

The Doctor couldn't suppress the smile that quirked his lips at the memories Sarah Jane's musings produced. Rose, too, didn't even try to hide a grin.

"What'd you call him, Doctor?" Rose asked. "Intergalactic playboy?"

"He once quite proudly claimed he'd shag anything that breathed, and some things that didn't," the Doctor recalled wryly. "More than once I caught him wandering around naked. He had no shame whatsoever."

"But he does now," Rose said. "He got horribly embarrassed yesterday when he realised he didn't have any clothes on. Once upon a time, he would have taken the opportunity to show off."

"That's my fault," Ianto said heavily. "I taught him to be ashamed of his own body. I taught him that being naked was a bad thing."

"Oh, I wouldn't be too hard on yourself," the Doctor reassured him. "A little bit of modesty won't go astray."

"Tell me something, lad," the Brig said thoughtfully, effectively redirecting the conversation. "Does he heed you in everything?"

Ianto answered with a nod.

"Yes, sir. Mostly he does. I do wonder how he'll cope when we have to go our separate ways. Before, he was doing what I told him to do as a necessity. We're safe now, but he still thinks he needs my permission for everything."

"I shouldn't be surprised by that," the Brig said. "For over a hundred years, all he knew was being a prisoner and getting ordered around. He's miles out of his comfort zone, now, so of course he'll fall back on the one thing he knows, and that's having someone else to tell him what he can or can't do."

"He's still frightened that this is all just a trick, or a façade," Gage pointed out. "He's scared that he'll be punished for doing something wrong."

Sarah Jane looked sadly towards the door, through which Jack and Luke had disappeared less than a minute ago.

"Still just a child."

* * *

_to be continued..._


	30. Educating Jack

Luke was fascinated with Jack. There was no other way to put it. Here was a fully grown man who had the emotional maturity of the six year-old who lived two houses away from him and his mother. And yet, where he often lost patience with that six year-old, he didn't have that issue with Jack. He genuinely liked this man-child who was currently showing off his colourfully adorned bed with all the pride of his mother when she'd first introduced him to K-9.

"Where are your books?" Luke asked as he looked around the room with interest. One of the things that Luke had done when Jack and Ianto had left was to provide Jack with a small selection of books to take with him. The intention had been for Ianto to read to Jack, and hopefully help him to relearn the skill. At Luke's question, though, Jack's face fell.

"I don't know," he admitted. A mixture of emotions flared across his face – primarily misery and fear – and Luke's stomach rolled unpleasantly as he realised that Jack was genuinely afraid of his reaction. "I lost them," he went on in a small voice that had taken on a telltale tremor. "I'm bad, aren't I?"

Luke felt honestly confused. It seemed a logical explanation to him that as Jack had been recaptured by Torchwood near Jackie Tyler's home, then that was probably where the books would be. He didn't fully comprehend Jack's lack of rationale – even given his childlike mentality – but he did understand Jack's need for comfort.

"It's all right, Jack. I'm not mad. I bet you just left the books at Mrs Tyler's place. Mum could get them, and we can give them to you when you come to visit again."

Sniffling, Jack laid his head on Luke's shoulder in an endearing fashion.

"Really?"

"Really," Luke confirmed. "They're not lost. You'll see."

Jack's arms snaked their way around to engulf Luke in a bone-crushing hug.

"I love you, Luke."

Luke wasn't entirely sure how to react to that sentiment. So far in his comparatively short life, his mother was the only person who had said those words to him. He'd learnt to respond in kind initially because he'd realised it was the expected and socially acceptable response, but eventually too because he had begun to genuinely love her as his surrogate mother. To have Jack tell him that now was confusing, but he supposed the basic rules were the same.

"I love you, too," he answered, knowing he had to respond in some way, and figuring it was the most acceptable. What he truly wasn't expecting, though, was for Jack to utter a happy noise, and then kiss him squarely on the mouth.

Luke froze in shock, but only until he felt the very distinct sensation of Jack's tongue swiping clumsily and wetly over his lips and teeth. Breaking out of his paralytic state of shock, Luke planted both hands on Jack's chest and shoved him backwards.

"Stop it! What are you doing?"

For long seconds, man and boy stared at each other – Luke in wide-eyed shock, and Jack in wide-eyed confusion.

"I… I'm sorry," Jack stammered. Tears brimmed in his eyes at the perceived rejection. He started to reach out tentatively to Luke, but the boy jerked away from him and quickly shifted beyond reach.

Shaken, Luke got up and began to edge towards the door.

"I… I have to go. I can hear Mum calling."

The teen fled before Jack could utter another sound.

* * *

By the time Luke found the garden again – and he was positive the TARDIS had sent him there via an extended route to give him a chance to calm down and think rationally – his shock had diminished to a manageable level and he was starting to feel more than a little embarrassed at his panicked reaction. The more he considered it, the more he began to realise that Jack had not meant any harm, and had certainly not meant to scare him. The kiss hadn't been meant as part of that sex stuff that Clyde had told him about. It had just been Jack's unique… and kind of sloppy… way of saying 'I love you'.

Luke grimaced and rubbed at his mouth. He just wished that Jack had stuck to a hug and a kiss on the cheek. That he could have coped with.

He felt a pang of guilt as he walked back into the garden alone. Chances were that Jack thought he'd really done something bad this time, and was probably sitting in his room in absolute terror that he was about to get into serious trouble. In hindsight, he supposed he shouldn't have run out on Jack in the way that he had.

"Luke?" Ianto asked as he approached the group. "Where is Jack?"

Luke had just seconds to make up his mind. If he was truthful, then it probably would result in Jack getting into trouble. If he lied, though, then he would have to make it extremely convincing. That in itself was a daunting prospect, with not only his mother there, but the Doctor and the Brigadier as well. With Jack's confused and distressed expression at the forefront of his mind, Luke plastered a smile onto his face and spoke as normally as he could.

"Still in his room. Mum, are we going?"

Sarah Jane blinked in surprise. She had honestly expected to have a fight on her hands to get him out of the ancient time ship, and wasn't sure whether to be relieved or suspicious that he was willing to leave without extra persuasion.

"Yes, well, I suppose we'd better get moving. Alistair?"

The Brigadier nodded his acquiescence. With the questions about Jack and Ianto answered, he was perfectly happy to see the Doctor on his way once more.

"Yes, time we were off, I think. Doctor, don't you forget. UNIT would still like to get their hands on Jack. Don't give them the opportunity."

"I don't intend to," the Doctor promised.

"Ianto, say goodbye to Jack for me," Sarah Jane said as she hugged him once more.

"I will," he promised. Then they were gone, and the Doctor began hustling Ianto towards the control room.

"All right, let's go and call your parents, Mr Jones. You too, Mr Adams. I imagine you have family as well that you'd like to let know that you're quite safe. Have to do it from the control room, since someone broke their phone."

"Oi!" Rose grumbled. "Wasn't my fault, thankyou very much."

The Doctor flashed her a brief grin.

"Rose, go and get Jack, would you? He's probably hungry by now, so take him to the kitchen."

Rose rolled her eyes as Ianto and Gage went with the Doctor, leaving her to see to Jack. It wasn't that she minded, of course, but Jack seemed to respond far better to Ianto and Gage than he did to her. Residue issues of mistrust, stemming from Satellite Five, she supposed unhappily. She could hardly complain about it, though. This would be her first time alone with Jack since before that fateful battle, though, and she had to confess that she was nervous.

It was easy enough to find Jack and Ianto's room, and she had intended on taking a moment to compose herself before going in. The TARDIS, it seemed, had other ideas. The door slid open of its own accord, revealing Jack's distinctly forlorn figure, sitting on his bed and clutching his dog and blanket in a death grip. Even from the doorway, she could see the tears on his cheeks, and the tremors that went through his body as he struggled with his see-sawing emotions.

"Jack? What's wrong?"

Forgetting about her own reticence, Rose rushed to his side. When he refused to look at her, she crouched down so that she could look him in the eye.

"Jack, c'mon now. Talk to me. What's wrong?"

He spoke in fragmented stutters which were interrupted by his hitching breath.

"I… I d… did a bad th… thing… and now Luke h… hates me!"

He broke into noisy sobs, leaving Rose confused and a little scared.

"What happened? What did you do?"

"I… I k… kissed him…"

Rose gulped, not sure whether to laugh or cringe. It was clearly no laughing matter for Jack, though, and now that she thought about it, Luke's sudden desire to leave the TARDIS as quickly as possible also made sense. She crouched in front of him, at a loss for what to say or do.

"I'm sure he doesn't hate you," she said anxiously as he wept into the tattered blanket. "You probably just startled him, that's all. I mean, he's just a kid, after all. Anyway, why did you kiss him?"

Jack wiped the back of his hand miserably across his eyes.

"I said I loved him, and he said he loved me, and so I kissed him because that's what you're supposed to do when you love someone. It said so on the television."

"Oh…" Rose murmured in stunned realisation. Jack wasn't talking about an innocent peck on the cheek here – he was talking about a full-on snog. "Oh, Jack, you silly goose. Didn't Ianto talk to you about the tellie? How it's not real?"

The blank look on Jack's face answered her question in spades, and she sighed as she realised that any explanations were now up to her.

"All right, listen up. Everything you see on the tellie is just acting. It's not real. What happens on the tellie isn't how things happen in real life."

Jack thought of his failed attempt in Jackie's flat to convince Ianto not to leave him, and a slow comprehension began to dawn.

"It's pretend?" he asked tentatively. Rose nodded, enthused by his comprehension.

"Yeah, that's right. It's just pretend. So you shouldn't try to copy what you see on it. The other thing is, kissin's not a bad thing in itself, but Luke is just a kid. You can't kiss a kid the same way that you kiss a grown-up."

She could see him struggling to understand, and waited patiently for Jack's thought process to catch up.

"I can't kiss Luke like I kiss Yan," he said haltingly. Rose did an admirable job of hiding her amusement at the idea of Jack snogging Ianto. He still looked confused, though. Finally, she decided that the only way to make him understand was through a practical demonstration.

"Here, look," Rose said, and she drew Jack around to look at her directly. She paused, and her breath caught briefly as she gazed on his familiar, beautiful face. It broke her heart to think that he remembered nothing of what they'd experienced together with the Doctor. Realising that Jack was still waiting, she shook herself out of reverie.

"Okay, look. This is how you should kiss a kid like Luke… and mind you, that's only if you know them really, really well. Most people don't like their kids bein' kissed by a strange bloke. Anyway, this is how you should do it."

She leaned in and gave him a very quick and extremely chaste kiss on the cheek.

"There, you see?"

Jack frowned adorably before mimicking the gesture and kissing her on the cheek.

"There you go," Rose encouraged him. "That's how you should've kissed Luke."

"I'm sorry," Jack said softly. "I didn't mean to upset him."

"Don't worry about it," Rose reassured him. "I don't think he was mad, or anything. Just… a little confused. You just say sorry to him next time you see him, and it'll be like it never happened. Okay?"

"Okay… But what about the other kind? Grown-up kissing?"

Rose had a niggling feeling that she was moving into dangerous territory, and she wished Ianto were there to take control. He wasn't though, and she had to finish what she'd started. Trying to ignore that little voice of warning, Rose leaned back in and captured Jack's lips in a slow, tender and increasingly heated kiss.

She took control from the start, sliding one hand behind his head and teasing his lips open with her tongue. He responded, clumsily but with a natural talent that she remembered so vividly from that one, bitter-sweet time that he'd kissed her. It was easy – far too easy – to lose herself in the sensations and the absolute pleasure of Jack's mouth.

It was far too easy to forget that the man she was currently kissing was, in too many ways, only a child himself.

A loud cough cut into her diminishing awareness, and she broke the kiss off as it occurred to her with jarring abruptness that they were no longer alone. She looked around guiltily, and wasn't sure whether to be relieved or worried to find Gage there, looking markedly unimpressed with what he'd just walked in on.

"Rose, can I speak to you outside for a moment?" he asked coolly. She flushed with embarrassment, and hurried out without a word.

"Gage?" Jack asked tentatively, and Gage smiled warmly at him.

"Just wait there for a moment, sweetheart. I just need to give Rose a message from the Doctor, and then I'll be right with you, okay?"

Satisfied that he was not in any trouble, as well as generally oblivious to the tension between Gage and Rose, Jack returned his attention to his dog, nuzzling it affectionately with his cheek. Out in the corridor, with the door safely closed behind them, Gage turned towards Rose with an expression of controlled anger.

"Exactly what the hell do you think you were doing in there?"

Rose ran her fingers through her hair. It was hard enough trying to put together a straight answer in her own mind without having to vocalise it to one of Jack's protectors.

"Look… Jack had a kind of misunderstanding with Luke."

"What sort of misunderstanding?" Gage asked. He couldn't stop the frown that darkened his features, but at the same time he knew it would be pointless to just explode at the young woman. After all, she was clearly still the Doctor's favourite, and Gage had no wish to do anything to provoke the Time Lord into booting him out prematurely.

"Jack apparently got a little too affectionate with Luke, and he… you know… kissed him."

Gage's eyebrows shot up.

"Kissed him? I gather you're not talking about a peck on the cheek here."

"No. I mean a full-on snog. Jack was upset about it. He thought Luke was mad at him…"

"And what? You thought you'd offer a little personal comfort? Or did you just decide to jump on the bandwagon?"

It was an unfair accusation, and Gage regretted it the moment the words were out of his mouth. It was too late to take them back, though, and for her part, Rose was not exactly trying to argue with him.

"He thought he was in trouble! And you've seen how he is when he thinks he's done something bad."

That thought sobered Gage up considerably, and served to douse his anger. She was right, of course. Despite improvements and progress, Jack still existed in a world of fear and uncertainty. He was constantly worried about doing something wrong and making people angry with him. Much like any little child, he desperately needed constant validation that he was a good boy, and well-loved.

"I wasn't trying it on with him," Rose insisted in a soft, albeit tense voice. "It wasn't like that. I was talking to him, and trying to make him understand the difference between kissin' a kid, and kissin' another adult, but he wasn't getting it."

"So you decided to give a practical demonstration," Gage said flatly. As much as he understood her motives, it didn't excuse the stupidity of it.

"He's not a kid!" Rose snapped.

"Maybe not physically," Gage argued back, "but mentally and emotionally he's only around five years old!"

Rose let her breath out in a rush.

"He may be only thinkin' like a kid, but his body is reactin' like a grown-up. Now, back when the Doctor and I met Jack, everything was about sex with him. It was as natural as breathing as far as he was concerned. He's startin' to react like that again, and we're not going to be able to stop it by tryin' to keep him at kindergarten level. He needs to understand the differences, and what is or isn't acceptable. So maybe I shouldn't have done it the way that I did, but at least I was tryin' to help him understand. And I think that now he gets that he can't kiss kids like Luke with an open mouth and tongue!"

Gage grimaced. She was right, and he knew it. He'd seen how openly affectionate Jack was with Ianto. He knew how Jack was with him, and he knew Ianto was concerned about the possibility of Jack starting to respond sexually to other people. They were walking a very fine line between educating Jack, and awakening him sexually. Gage knew well enough that the latter would happen eventually – especially if what the Doctor and Rose had said about his character pre-Torchwood was true – but right then it was something that they wanted to avoid for as long as possible.

Mentally and emotionally, Jack was not ready for sex, and they all knew it.

"I'm sorry, Rose," Gage apologised quietly. "I know you're trying to help, but please… Do you think you could avoid the practical lessons from now on?"

She smiled somewhat nervously.

"Sure. Next time something like this happens, I'll make sure to find you, will I?"

Gage rolled his eyes. The dig was fair, though he wasn't going to openly admit it. Shoving her hands into her pockets, Rose eyed him quizzically.

"So, did you really have a message for me from the Doctor? Or was that just a line to get me out of the room without upsetting Jack?"

He blinked in surprise, and then smiled sheepishly.

"No, I really do have a message for you. The Doctor asked if you could go to the control room. He said he's taking the TARDIS to Wales, so that Ianto can visit his parents."

She nodded and started off down the corridor, only to turn back to him questioningly.

"What about you? What are you going to do?"

Gage grimaced.

"Me? I get to try and distract Jack for the next couple of hours, and hope to God that he doesn't realise Ianto is gone."

* * *

Gage entered the bedroom, wracking his mind for some way to keep Jack occupied. It wasn't going to be an easy task, he knew, and he dreaded what might happen when Jack inevitably got around to asking where 'Yan' was. Two bloody hours, Gage thought ruefully. How the hell was he going to keep Jack from asking for Ianto for a whole two hours?

He was two steps inside the door, and froze in shock at the sight before him. Jack's dog and blanket were abandoned on the bed, and he himself was sitting on the edge of said bed. He was holding the waistband of his sweatpants open and was peering inside with a look on abject fascination on his face. The reason why was painfully obvious, even from where Gage was standing on the other side of the room.

Through the material of his pants, it was very obvious that Jack had an erection.

Suddenly aware that he was no longer alone, Jack looked up at Gage and spoke wonderingly.

"Gage, what's this?"

And with that he promptly pulled his pants down to reveal what Gage had to concede was a rather impressive erection. There was no embarrassment on Jack's part – only innocent curiosity, and Gage had to stifle an urge to bolt from the room and find Ianto.

"Rose kissed me and then this happened," Jack told him. "Why?"

Gage fought a desire to swear. On the other hand, he supposed he should be grateful, in an adverse sort of way. Now, he had a way to distract Jack from Ianto's absence.

"C'mon, lad, pull your pants up," Gage told him. He could feel his face burning red as he tried to avoid looking directly at Jack.

"But Gage, what is it?" Jack persisted. Gage ruffled his hair lightly as Jack tugged the sweatpants back up over his hips.

"Come with me, sweetheart."

"Where are we going?"

"To the bathroom. I'm going to introduce you to the benefits of a cold shower, and then you and I are going to have a nice, long talk."

_

* * *

_

_to be continued..._


	31. Of Red Caps & Chocolate Milk

Preoccupied as he was with thoughts of the impending visit to his parents, Ianto was oblivious to the tension exuded by Rose when she returned. He missed the frown directed at her by the Doctor, and he also missed the anxious shake of her head in reply to that frown. By the time he realised Rose was even there, both she and the Doctor were doing a magnificent job of pretending there was absolutely nothing wrong.

"Where is Jack?" he asked.

"In his room," Rose told him. "S'okay. Gage is with him. He's gonna keep him busy, so hopefully he won't even notice you're gone."

Ianto sighed.

"I shouldn't need to be so clandestine about visiting my own parents, but Jack… He just doesn't want to accept that I won't always be here."

The Doctor regarded him curiously.

"Should he need to?"

Ianto directed an unamused look at the Time Lord.

"Doctor, even if I stayed with Jack for the rest of my life, eventually he will still be without me. Nothing can change that, unless you can do something about his immortality…?"

The Doctor was conspicuously silent, and even more conspicuously ignored a pointed look from Rose. Ianto nodded, his suspicions confirmed.

"I thought as much. It would just be better all round if he gets used to being without me sooner rather than later."

Any further conversation was cut short when the TARDIS came to a shuddering halt, enough so that Ianto half-expected Jack to come rushing into the control room, demanding to know what was happening. He spotted the Time Lord watching him with a half smile.

"He won't have noticed us landing," the Doctor reassured him. Ianto grimaced.

"I hope not. So... Can I just go on out?"

"Just a moment," the Doctor murmured. "Let me run a quick check of the surrounding area, and just make sure that there's no one around who shouldn't be."

Ianto waited with increasing nerves while the Doctor ran his scan. He was just starting to think there must be a problem when the Time Lord grinned and motioned to the door.

"It's all clear. Go ahead, Ianto. Oh, and here..."

Ianto blinked in surprise when the Doctor tossed him a key attached to a fine silver chain.

"What's this for?"

"To let yourself back in with, of course," the Doctor explained matter-of-factly. "Didn't think I was going to just leave the door open for you, did you? Now, go on. Put it around your neck, and don't lose it."

Ianto slipped the silver chain over his head, and tucked the key away safely beneath his shirt. He started towards the door, and then paused.

"If Jack does happen to realise I'm not here, perhaps you'd better just come and get me. You know, just to avoid the upset."

"Go on," Rose said, shoving him affectionately towards the door. "Go see your mum 'n dad. Don't worry about Jack, we'll take care of him. He won't even notice you're gone. You'll see."

An odd look passed over Ianto's face, but he only smiled in response before heading out of the TARDIS.

* * *

"All right," the Doctor said, turning to Rose once Ianto had gone. "What's going on?"

She briefly considered ignoring the question, only to dismiss the thought a moment later. If they were going to be in any way successful in helping Jack to recover, lying or holding out was not the right thing to do. She explained what had transpired in Jack's room between Jack and herself while the Doctor listened in thoughtful silence. He didn't say a word until she finished speaking.

"Gage is with him right now?"

"Yeah. I suppose, if anything, at least he's got a way to keep Jack distracted while Ianto is with his mum and dad."

The Doctor's eyebrows shot up at her somewhat unfortunate choice of words. Rose realised instantly what she'd just said, and went flame red.

"I don't mean it like that! I just meant, he'll at least have something to talk about. Not the most comfortable of topics, mind you, but it'll keep Jack busy."

The Doctor didn't know whether to laugh or frown, and eventually settled for a wry smile.

"Seems the old Jack Harkness might still be there after all, lurking not too far beneath the surface. I honestly don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing."

"Well, _I_ miss him," Rose said with a hint of ferocity in her voice. "It wasn't the flirting, either. Well, not _just_ the flirting. I could talk to him, you know? In a way that I can't always talk to you. He was like a big brother, always looking out for me. I miss that, and I wish he could just be back to the way he was before!"

She was almost in tears, and the Doctor didn't hesitate to pull her into a comforting hug.

"I know," he murmured. "I wish that too, Rose, but we have to be prepared to accept that it may not happen. Not completely."

"How long?" Rose asked plaintively. "How long before we start tryin' to help him remember?"

"Once we've taken care of everything here on Earth," he answered. "When we're safely back in the vortex, then we'll begin. It's not going to happen quickly, though. If it even happens at all, it's going to be a gradual process. We're not just talking about a few repressed memories here. We're talking about the psychic equivalent of brain damage here."

Rose nodded in reluctant acceptance. She knew that was the best she was going to get out of him, and not to push the issue any further. There was, however, one other thing she wanted to know before the Doctor was completely distracted by other things.

"Doctor, you said that what Jack is now... a fixed point... that you can feel it."

He nodded as he fiddled with an obscure dial on the control panel.

"Like fingernails down a chalkboard. I felt it as soon as we landed inside Canary Wharf, it was that strong."

"Well, if it was that strong, haven't you ever felt it... him before?"

He froze, staring at her with a look that was alien in its utter intensity.

"What are you trying to say, Rose?"

She looked like she was regretting having spoken at all, but she didn't back down.

"Jack was a prisoner of Torchwood for over a hundred years, Doctor. Are you gonna tell me that in all the time you've lived, and all the time you've spent on Earth, that you've never once sensed him?"

The Doctor went very still and quiet, and Rose felt her stomach curl unpleasantly.

"You did, didn't you?" she asked softly. A sigh escaped the Doctor's lips, and he finally turned to face her.

"Yes, but not in this regeneration, or my last one. I came across Jack... or at least, that 'fixed point' sensation in two or three of my past regenerations. I didn't know who or what was causing it, and I just did what was instinctive."

"You ran."

"Yes. Just as well, too. Would have been disastrous if I'd come across Jack at any of those times."

"Reapers?" Rose wondered, trying her best to swallow the bitter thought that Jack might have been saved from his imprisonment so much sooner.

"Possibly," the Doctor agreed. "It just would have been very, very... well, _icky_."

It was with difficulty that Rose didn't laugh. 'Icky' was not a word she thought she would have ever heard the Doctor utter. He smiled at her amusement.

"Oh, you know what I mean, Rose. The bottom line is, we have him back with us now, and we're not going to lose him again, right?"

Rose answered with a fierce nod.

"Right."

Grinning again, the Doctor clapped his hands together enthusiastically.

"Okay, then! Why don't we..."

He was cut off short by an anguished howl that shattered the TARDIS' otherwise quiet atmosphere. They exchanged dismayed looks as Jack's voice wailed loudly in distress, howling Ianto's name.

"Why don't we go see if we can keep Jack from panicking, and thinking Ianto's left him?" she suggested.

"You read my mind," the Doctor said wryly. "After you, Miss Tyler."

She rolled her eyes at him, and hurried away down the corridor, with the Doctor close behind.

* * *

Ianto was both surprised and relieved to find that the Doctor had managed to land the TARDIS in the front garden of his parents' home. He wouldn't have dared to say anything to the Doctor's face, but he had honestly expected to step out of the TARDIS and find he had to walk five miles or more to the outskirts of Newport, where his parents lived. It was a relief for that not to be the case. He grimaced a little as he approached the front door. Now, he just hoped that they landed at the right time frame, and not five years into the future.

His fears were not exactly eased when the door opened and his mother rushed out. Ianto grunted as he found himself caught up in a bone-crushing hug.

"Mam... please..."

She released him from her embrace, but Ianto's relief was short-lived as she promptly smacked him hard on the arm.

"You had us worried sick! For the love of all things sacred, Ianto, we thought you were dead!"

He frowned as he rubbed at the spot she'd slapped.

"I called you as soon as I could, Mam..."

He yelped as she slapped him again, and cringed under the ferocity of her glare.

"One phone call, days after London goes to hell! One! For all we knew, you could have been calling under duress! And that's not to mention the fact that we hadn't heard a peep from you for nigh on six months beforehand! Your poor sister thought you were dead, and we were starting to wonder!"

Ianto's eyebrows lifted, and he looked over at his father for help.

"Tad...?"

Alwyn Jones returned Ianto's pleading stare with little sympathy.

"Don't look at me, son. Your mam is right. We had no idea whether you were really safe or not. That thirty second phone call did nothing to reassure us. It's been two weeks since all that business in London, and a good six months before that since we'd talked to you last. And on top of that, do you realise we've had people from UNIT here, looking for you?"

Ianto felt a chill race down his spine, and he found himself looking around, as though he expected to see UNIT soldiers appearing out of thin air. His parents exchanged tense looks.

"Relax, boy. There hasn't been anyone from UNIT around here for more than a week," Alwyn said coolly. "Now, why don't you come inside, and tell us where you've been for the last two weeks?"

Ianto's shoulders slumped, and he followed them inside.

* * *

"Now, sweetheart, stop looking like we're about to interrogate you," Meredith chided him. "Sit down, and I'll put the kettle on. We'll have a lovely cup of tea, and talk."

"Actually," Ianto ventured awkwardly, "I'd love a cup of coffee, if that's all right."

"It bloody well isn't," Alwyn snapped. "You know we don't keep that coffee rubbish in the house. You'll have tea, and you'll damn well like it."

"Alwyn, stop it," Meredith growled. "Are you trying to drive him off again?"

Alwyn glowered at his wife.

"Of course not, but he always behaves like he's better than us, and I won't have it in our own home!"

Ianto rubbed his hands over his face, starting to wonder just why he'd been so anxious to see his parents.

"Tea is fine," he said, struggling to keep his tone even and non-confrontational. "Look, I'm sorry, I had no idea it had been two weeks for you."

Silence met his words, followed eventually by a strange noise from his father.

"Two weeks for us? What do you mean, _for us_? Are you trying to tell us it hasn't been that long for you?"

Ianto sighed, and spoke slowly and carefully.

"Let me tell you everything I can, from the beginning. Then, maybe you'll understand why you haven't heard from me for so long."

"All right, then," Alwyn conceded. "This ought to be good."

"Alwyn, shut up," Meredith told him. "Let him say his piece."

Favouring his mother with a grateful look, Ianto went on to give them a heavily edited version of everything that had happened from the moment he'd received his 'promotion' to Secure Archives. He could tell easily enough from the looks on their faces that they didn't believe him, but he didn't stop until he'd finished with their final escape from Canary Wharf in the Doctor's ship.

"You really expect us to believe that?" Alwyn asked in a dangerously quiet voice. Ianto held his father's stare, showing far more bravado than he really felt. However, after facing Daleks and Cybermen, and the murderous madness of Robin Spence and Yvonne Hartman, he was hardly going to back down now.

"Tad, did you happen to see how I actually arrived here? Because I didn't walk all the way here from London."

Frowning, Alwyn got up and stalked over to the window. He peered out for several seconds before speaking in frustration.

"I don't see anything. Not a car, or even so much as a bike..."

"Look again, Tad. Look harder. Over in the corner of the front garden, by Mam's rose bushes."

He did so before looking back at Ianto incredulously.

"That's a bloody phone box."

"It's a police box," Ianto corrected automatically, only to flinch at his father's withering glare. "Sorry. But yeah, that's it. That's the Doctor's ship."

"A little blue box? Ianto..."

Ianto couldn't quite suppress a wry smile.

"It's a lot bigger on the inside, believe me."

"And this man you've been looking after," Meredith said in a deliberate manner. "Is he... in there? Now?"

"Yes," Ianto answered. He heard a strange note in her voice, but chose to ignore it. "My friend Gage is with him. Hopefully, he'll be able to keep him busy for an hour or so, until I'm back..."

"Back?" Meredith burst out. "What do you mean, back? You're not going anywhere, Ianto Jones! You are staying right here with your family, where you belong."

"Mam, please," Ianto pled, starting to feel a touch desperate. "You don't understand. I need to go, at least for now. Jack... He doesn't seem to be able to cope without me yet. I'm working on it, but at the moment he's still too attached to me for me to be able to just walk away from him. He's come so far, and I don't want to damage the progress he's made."

"So, what you're saying is that he gets separation anxiety?" Alwyn asked bluntly. "Like a dog?"

Ianto bristled, rapidly starting to lose his patience with his father, and he was on his feet even before he himself realised it.

"He's not a dog, Tad! He's..."

Anything Ianto had been intending to say evaporated at a familiar sound, the sound of Jack's anguished wail. Striding over to the window, he looked out to see exactly what he had hoped to avoid. Jack was on the lawn just outside the door of the TARDIS, being held back only by the collective strength of Gage, Rose and the Doctor. He was howling pitifully, wailing for Ianto and struggling desperately to free himself from his minders' hold. Swearing, he darted out the door, ignoring the questions coming from his parents.

"Jack!" Ianto called out, shouldering both Gage and the Doctor aside with little preamble. "Cariad, I'm here, I'm right here. Calm down, love."

He wrapped his arms around Jack, taking the full force of the other man's distraught struggles, refusing to let go even when Jack nearly lifted him clean off his feet. Slowly, though, Jack's cries lessened, and he finally seemed to realise who was holding him. With another miserable cry, Jack collapsed to the ground, and he flung his arms around Ianto in sheer distress.

"All right, sweetheart," Ianto whispered, holding Jack and allowing himself to be held in turn. "It's all right. I'm here, I didn't go far. I'm right here."

As Jack cried into his shoulder, he looked up accusingly at the three standing there in guilty silence.

"Well, that lasted how long? Barely twenty minutes!"

"It was my fault," Gage confessed softly, but Ianto shook his head.

"Not now, Gage. I don't want to hear it at the moment."

"Ianto?"

Ianto heard the voice behind him, and felt his heart sink. Meredith Jones moved around slowly into his line of sight, confusion and concern on her face.

"Is this him? Is this your Jack, that you were telling us about?"

Ianto nodded, seeing no point in lying.

"Yes, Mam. This is Jack. And these are the people who helped us escape from London. Gage Adams, Rose Tyler, and the Doctor."

Meredith looked back at her husband, whose expression was unreadable as he watched the pitiful sight of the distraught stranger clinging to his only son. She then approached slowly, and crouched down beside Ianto and Jack, and reached out cautiously to lay a gentle hand on Jack's shoulder. He started a little at her touch, and turned his head just enough to be able to see her despite his face still being mostly buried in Ianto's shoulder.

"Hello, Jack," Meredith said in a quiet, warm tone, and at the same time favoured him with an equally warm smile. "My name is Meredith. I'm Ianto's mam."

Ianto felt Jack's grip on him tighten just a little, and though he said nothing in response, Ianto suspected he knew what he was thinking – that she was just one more person who might want to take his Ianto away from him. Meredith continued to speak, still smiling that warm, gentle smile.

"When Ianto was a little boy, and he was upset or frightened, I'd give him chocolate milk and ice cream to make him feel better. Would you like some chocolate milk and ice cream, Jack?"

Ianto struggled not to grin, knowing his mother had just said the magic words. Not surprisingly, Jack's head came up slowly, and he stared at Meredith through red and swollen eyes.

"Ch... Chocolate ice cream? With topping, and sprinkles?"

Her smile widened, and she reached out instinctively to stroke his tear-streaked cheek.

"Yes, sweetheart, if you like. Now, c'mon. Up you get."

Slowly, Jack allowed himself to be coaxed up onto his feet. Meredith held a hand out to him, and he looked questioningly to Ianto, who answered with a nod and a reassuring smile. Jack placed his hand into Meredith's, and she led him into the house. Ianto waited until they'd gone before turning to look darkly at Gage, Rose and the Doctor.

"Not even twenty minutes," he hissed. "What the hell happened?"

"I messed up," Gage admitted, sounding sick. "I scared him... I didn't mean to, but I scared him. He called out for you, and of course you weren't there... He just became hysterical, and we couldn't calm him down. He was convinced you'd left him, and he was coming to find you. We were trying to get him back into the TARDIS when you came out of the house."

"Bloody hell, Gage," Ianto whispered, pushing his fingers through his hair in aggravation. "I only asked you to look after him for an hour. Just an hour! Why was that so hard?"

"It wasn't all his fault," Rose spoke up quickly. "Some things happened, and Gage was trying to sort it out... It just kind of backfired."

Ianto stared at Rose for a long moment, then at Gage, and finally at the Doctor, who by all accounts had decided to stay back and keep his mouth shut for once. Shaking his head, he began to back away towards the house.

"I'm going inside, and I'm going to finish this visit with my parents, and then Jack and I will come back to the TARDIS _together_. Then, when I've got him properly settled again, you're all going to tell me _exactly_ what is going on here. Is that clear?"

Without waiting for an answer, he turned and stalked away into the house.

"He really is rather formidable, isn't he?" the Doctor remarked finally, sounding altogether too amused. Gage grimaced as they made their way back inside the TARDIS. He really did not like the prospect of having to tell Ianto exactly what had transpired to set Jack off on such hysterics.

"Yeah. He really is."

* * *

Jack may have gone willingly with Meredith but his anxiety hadn't diminished in the slightest, as was evidenced by the way he flung himself at Ianto the moment the younger man walked into the kitchen.

"All right," Ianto murmured soothingly as he rubbed his hands up and down Jack's back. "It's all right. I'm right here, love. I'm not going anywhere."

"I'm sorry," Jack sobbed, burying his face in Ianto's shoulder once more. "Please don't leave me, Yan toe. Please…"

Ianto looked to his mother helplessly, and was grateful to see she was stirring a glass filled with chocolate milk.

"C'mon, cariad. Come and sit down. Look, Mam's made up some chocolate milk for you."

With difficulty, Ianto manoeuvred Jack over to the table and into a chair. It was made all the more difficult by the fact that Jack refused to relinquish his hold on Ianto; as though he was terrified that if he did let go, Ianto would vanish.

"Here you go," Meredith said. "Go ahead and try that."

Still clinging to Ianto with one hand, Jack reached for the glass. His hand was trembling violently, though, and some of the contents sloshed over the side.

"I'm sorry!" Jack burst out, on the verge of a fresh wave of tears.

"Don't be silly," Meredith told him. "It's just a little bit of spillage, easy mopped up. Now here, let go of Ianto. It's all right, he's not going anywhere, are you, dear?"

"No, Mam," Ianto answered. He laid a hand on Jack's shoulder to reassure his charge that he wasn't going to disappear. Meredith nodded her approval as Jack reluctantly released his hold on Ianto.

"Now, you hold on with both hands… that's it… and just drink slowly. There you go!"

Ianto couldn't help but smile as Jack drank a few mouthfuls. When he looked up again, there was a shy smile on his chocolate milk coated lips.

"Thankyou, Mam."

If Meredith was taken aback Jack's choice of address, she didn't let it show. Instead, she favoured Jack with a gentle kiss to the top of his head before using a napkin to wipe his mouth clean.

"You're welcome. Now, how about I get you that ice cream that I promised?"

Jack's face lit up once more, the upset of earlier nearly forgotten.

"Please!"

"Very good," Meredith praised him. "I like a boy with good manners."

"Yan toe taught me," Jack informed her in utter seriousness.

Ianto was busy watching Jack with an indulgent smile, and almost missed his father leaving the room. He paused, staring at the retreating figure of his father, and feeling momentarily torn. Finally, he made his decision, leant down and spoke gently to Jack.

"I'm just going to go through that door there, Jack. I'll be right on the other side, all right? I'm not going far. You stay here, and have some ice cream."

Jack looked uncertain, but nodded anyway, and Ianto rewarded him with a tender kiss on his cheek. He then turned and went after his father.

* * *

Alwyn hadn't gone far. Ianto found him on the other side of the kitchen door, worry etched into his face. Ianto approached him slowly, not quite sure what to say.

"I know, he can be difficult to deal with," Ianto said, "but it's not Jack's fault. He wasn't always like this. He was a different person, and we're just trying to help him recover. Please try to understand, Tad…"

"We thought you'd been abducted," Alwyn said abruptly. Ianto stared at him in confused surprise.

"You… What? Why? Who told you that…?" He faltered as realisation hit. "UNIT… It was UNIT, wasn't it?"

Alwyn nodded, and sank into a chair. He lowered his head and pushed his fingers through his hair.

"A Lieutenant something-or-other came a day or two after everything went to hell in London. He made a show of being concerned about you, but it wasn't you that he was worried about. Not really. At that stage, though, your mam and I had no idea whether you were even still alive, so we were willing to tolerate anyone for a bit of news. He told us that you'd survived the battle… That's what he called it, the battle… He said you'd survived, but that you'd been taken captive by a monster that escaped during the chaos."

Ianto bristled. Once upon a time, he had hoped that UNIT would have been a solution to Jack's problem. Now, he knew better, and it was a bitter pill to swallow, to think that the supposedly reputable agency had the same attitude towards Jack as Torchwood.

"Jack isn't a monster, Tad."

"I know," Alwyn assured him. "I see that now. But when we were first told, your mam and I didn't know what to think. All we knew was that our boy was missing! What were we supposed to do, Ianto? You tell me!"

Ianto felt a chill settle deep in his gut.

"You called UNIT, didn't you? Oh god…"

"No, not this time," Alwyn insisted. "I confess that I wanted to, but your mam wouldn't let me."

Ianto wasn't appeased, and continued to stare suspiciously at his father.

"But…?"

"But I did call them after we got that phone call from you… just to tell them we'd heard from you, and that you seemed to be okay. Damn it, Ianto, don't you look at me like that! UNIT are supposed to be the good guys, aren't they? If we can't trust them, who the hell do we trust?"

"No one, Tad," Ianto burst out. "You don't trust anyone except me! And yes, UNIT are supposed to be the good guys, but they'll still lock Jack up like some sort of animal! God, I've got to get him back into the TARDIS. They probably already know he's here!"

"Ianto…"

"No! He's not safe here. We have to go now."

Ianto ran back into the kitchen, where Jack was eagerly awaiting the big bowl of ice cream that Meredith was preparing.

"Jack, love, we have to go, right now."

Meredith looked at him in startled confusion, and Jack uttered a cry of protest.

"No! Mam's making me ice cream with sprinkles!"

Ianto hated himself for what he was about to do, but there was no other option. He needed Jack to move quickly, without argument.

"Jack, listen to me. UNIT knows you're here. If we don't go straight back out to the TARDIS, they'll take you away and lock you up, just like they did in the bad place!"

Jack stared up at him in wide-eyed horror.

"Away from you?"

"Yes," Ianto said in an increasingly strained voice. "Yes, Jack. Away from me. Now, c'mon, please!"

With a frightened cry, Jack stumbled up and out of the room. Ianto glanced back at his parents with an apologetic gaze.

"I'm sorry, but I can't come back here. Not until I know that Jack is safe from UNIT. I… I'll call you when I can."

He hurried after Jack, hoping they weren't too late.

* * *

He caught up with Jack at the doorway. The older man huddled there, looking out in terror.

"Yan?"

Ianto pulled the TARDIS key out from within his shirt, and took Jack's hand firmly in his own.

"We're going to walk out there together. It's going to be fine, love. You'll see."

"I don't want to be locked up again," Jack whimpered.

"You won't be. We won't let them. Not me, not the Doctor, or Rose or Gage…"

Tears spilled from Jack's eyes.

"Gage would. He's mad at me."

Ianto blinked in shock, caught off-guard by the unexpected statement.

"No, he isn't! Why would you think that?"

"He said I have to have a cold shower," Jack answered. "If he wasn't mad at me, he would have said I could have a bubble bath."

Jack's logic was simple, childlike and indisputable. Ianto sucked in a long breath. He didn't understand why Gage would have said such a damaging thing to Jack… although, in hindsight, he thought he understood now what had caused Jack's earlier fit of hysteria. This, however, was not the time or the place to be dissecting the issue.

"Let's just get ourselves back to the TARDIS, all right? We'll be safe there. Look, it's right over there. A dozen steps, and we'll be safe inside. C'mon, love. Let's go."

They crossed the lawn together, and Ianto fitted the key quickly into the lock. He was just pushing the doors open when Jack uttered a wordless scream of fear. An instant later, Ianto gasped in shock as he was yanked around and shoved hard into the TARDIS.

He landed with a jarring thud on the floor just inside the doorway, and was just regaining his breath and equilibrium when Jack landed squarely on top of him and drove all the breath clean out of his body.

"Jack…" he wheezed, "get off me… Off…"

Something wet and warm dripped onto his face, and ran down his cheek. He wiped at it, and felt his stomach roll at the sight of blood smeared over his fingers. Ianto struggled to push Jack off him, and finally squeeze his way out from underneath. Only then did he see the reason for Jack's utter stillness.

Jack had taken a bullet to the temple. The shot had probably killed him instantly, and only by sheer luck had he fallen into the TARDIS, and not outside the safety of her doors.

"No," Ianto moaned as he tried to drag Jack's body up into his arms. "Jack…"

"Gage, pull his legs away from the doors, and get them closed," the Doctor ordered. "Hurry! We've got company coming."

Gage lifted Jack's legs and moved them around so that he could push the doors closed. As he did so, he saw the red berets of multiple UNIT soldiers coming over the wall of the Jones property, guns drawn and ready to use. He could hear someone shouting at them to surrender, and was infinitely grateful that closing the doors shut out those unwanted demands.

"Hold on," the Doctor shouted. "We're going back into the vortex."

Ianto barely heard the doctor. His focus was entirely on jack, and he continued to cradle him when, less than a minute after taking a bullet to the head, Jack revived with a strangled gasp and pained sob.

"Yan…?"

"I'm here, love," Ianto murmured. "It's all right. I'm here."

Jack's face crumpled, and he began to cry.

"Ouch, Yan, my head hurts..."

"I know," Ianto murmured. "Just lie still for a minutes. Then, we'll run you a nice, hot bubble bath, and get you cleaned up."

Jack stared up at him with wide, watery eyes.

"I... don't have to have a cold shower?"

Ianto fired a sharp look in Gage's direction, and the older man winced in discomfort and tried to shrink back out of sight behind Rose.

"No," Ianto told him firmly. "You don't."

"There we go," the Doctor announced with even more flourish than usual, making Ianto suspicious that he was trying to ease the tension. "Safely back in the vortex."

"C'mon, cariad," Ianto said, getting up somewhat unsteadily. "Let's go run that bath."

He took half a dozen steps before his brain registered that something was wrong. As the shock and adrenalin wore off, he became aware of a sharp, biting pain in his side that was steadily growing in intensity. His brushed over the irritated spot, and came away covered in fresh blood.

Dimly, he heard Gage shout something, followed by a similar cry from Rose, but none of that really registered. Instead, the one sound that did register in his ears was the sound of Jack screaming his name in fear and panic.

His knees hit the floor of the TARDIS as his legs gave way beneath him, and he was only distantly aware of someone's strong, if cool hands preventing him from falling completely and potentially striking his head on the floor. Ianto heard Jack's distressed wail again, though it sounded as though it was coming from a great distance away. Then, finally, blackness descended, and he knew no more.

* * *

_tbc..._


	32. Promises Made

Someone was shouting. Or rather, it sounded like shouting. His poor head wasn't really coping with any noise at all, and he was actually starting to feel a little queasy. Over the top of the shouting, though, Ianto heard another voice, whispering gently to him and soothing his mind. He tried to make sense of the new voice, but if it was actually words, then it was unlike any words he had ever heard. The voice was female in tone, though, so he made the logical assumption that it was Rose.

As slowly came back to consciousness, however reluctantly, he became aware of two things. The voice was both receding into the background, and it seemed to be changing into something he could understand. It was as he was just on the cusp of awareness that he finally heard two words that he understood – at least in that they were in English...

_Bad Wolf_...

Ianto groaned aloud, uttering those two words almost as if he was on automatic. Silence met his statement, and he was starting to wonder if he was, in fact, going mad. Then, a familiar face appeared above his own.

"Doctor...?" Ianto mumbled. A pleased grin lit up the Time Lord's face.

"Welcome back, Ianto. You gave everyone quite a nasty fright."

Slowly, the memories came creeping back.

"I was shot... wasn't I...?"

"In the side, yes. Although, I dare say that had it not been for Jack's quick actions, it might have been lights out altogether. That UNIT sniper wasn't aiming at Jack. He was aiming at you."

Ianto felt sick.

"Me...?"

"It seems that Jack saw the targeting light of a sniper rifle on you, recognised it for what it was, and pushed you out of the way. But either there was a second sniper, or the first was quick to get off a second shot, in order to take Jack down as well."

"UNIT," Ianto said bitterly. "It was UNIT."

It was a statement; not a question, and the Doctor didn't try to deny it.

"Yes, Mr Adams said he recognised the red caps." He leaned in a little, rather conspiratorially. "Not to worry, though. They won't be causing you trouble for much longer."

"How can you promise that?" Ianto asked incredulously. "They tried to kill me! They _did_ kill Jack! Clearly, despite your apparent association with UNIT, they don't accept that Jack is your responsibility! Somehow, Doctor, I don't think you have quite as much influence with them as you might have had in previous years."

Discomfort crossed the Doctor's face.

"That may be true, but we do have another option."

Ianto couldn't help but wonder whether he had some degree of concussion. Perhaps he'd hit his head when he collapsed...?

"Options?" he asked incredulously. "What other options?"

The grin that lit up the Doctor's face had Ianto wanting to slap him.

"When you're ready, we're going to take one more trip to Earth, and visit a good friend of mine."

Ianto frowned, not especially appeased by the Doctor's enthusiasm.

"Who?"

"Oh, I think I'll leave that as a surprise," the Doctor enthused. Ianto contemplated arguing with him, but immediately dismissed the idea. If the Time Lord didn't want to tell him, then badgering for an answer would only be a pointless waste of energy.

"Where is Jack?" he asked instead. "Is he all right?"

The self-satisfied grin on the Doctor's face faded.

"He was a little upset, at first..."

Ianto's eyebrows shot up.

"A little? Only a little?"

"He didn't become hysterical, if that's what you're thinking," the Doctor assured him. "Don't misunderstand me, Ianto. He was distraught, and very frightened, but he controlled his fear. After you collapsed, he picked you up and brought you straight here to the med room. He used his t-shirt as a compress, and kept pressure on your wound while the TARDIS scanned you to assess the damage. The wound itself was easily repaired, and there was no actual bullet to remove, but you had lost a lot of blood in a very short time. Jack offered his blood for you, Ianto."

"He what...?"

"Jack knew you needed blood. He wanted me to use his to save you. I asked him why, and he looked at me like I was an idiot and said because he loved you and he knew you'd do it for him."

"I would," Ianto whispered, tears stinging his eyes. The Doctor smiled fondly at the young man.

"As it turned out, it wasn't necessary. The TARDIS was able to take care of all that. Couldn't shift him from your side, though. He sat here for a straight twenty hours, holding your hand and talking to you. Only managed to convince him to go and get some rest in the end by promising I'd stay here with you." The Doctor paused, pondering that. "He was insistent, actually. Wouldn't listen to Rose or Gage. He wanted me to stay with you, so here I am!"

"Who was in here with you when I woke up?" Ianto asked tiredly. He suspected he wouldn't be able to stay away for much longer, but if someone else had been there then they had probably gone to get Jack. He really wanted to at least stay awake long enough to let Jack know he was going to fine.

"That was Gage," the Doctor replied in a guarded manner that piqued Ianto's curiosity.

"You were arguing with him."

Again, it was a statement rather than a question, and the Doctor suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"Yes, well, we had a slight difference of opinion. Nothing to worry about, though."

"And what about Rose?" Ianto asked, too exhausted to be truly annoyed by the Doctor's refusal to properly answer him. "Was that a difference of opinion, too?"

The Doctor paused, staring down at Ianto with a piercing gaze.

"Rose wasn't in here, Ianto. Why would you think she was?"

"I could hear her," Ianto grumbled. "Sounded like she was talking in a different language... some sort of gibberish, really... Although, it was much more pleasant to listen to than you and Gage having it out."

A wry smile turned up the corners of the Doctor's lips.

"I think, Mr Jones, that what you heard was the TARDIS, and she was probably trying to soothe you a little."

"What's Bad Wolf?" Ianto wondered, abruptly remembering the last words whispered to him before he fully woke up. The Doctor seemed to freeze, and Ianto fancied that he looked almost panicked. The look was gone in the space of a few seconds, though, and the Time Lord shook his head.

"Just something from the past. Nothing for you to worry about, I promise. Now, I do believe that the TARDIS has let Jack know you're awake, so..."

As if on cue, the door slid open, and Jack charged in.

"Yan! You're okay!"

Ianto braced himself for Jack to practically pounce on him, and was both relieved and astonished when Jack instead sat down on the edge of the bed with exaggerated care and clasped Ianto's hand in his own. Tears of joy and relief glistened in his eyes as he looked Ianto over.

"I was so scared," he admitted, his voice hitching a little with emotion. "You were hurt and bleeding, and I was so scared you were going to die. I don't ever want you to die, Yan. I love you."

Ianto sighed and drew Jack into his embrace as Jack broke down into heavy sobs.

"It's okay, cariad. I'm all right, and I'm not going anywhere. I love you, too."

He looked at the Doctor over the top of Jack's hunched and trembling form. The Time Lord watched the two of them with a melancholy sort of a smile before turning and slipping out in silence.

"I'm sorry," Jack sobbed into his shoulder. "Sorry, Yan. I'm sorry."

"Hey," Ianto murmured, rubbing his back soothingly. "What are you sorry for, you silly goose? This wasn't your fault."

"But it is," Jack argued miserably. "It's all my fault. Everything is my fault. It's all because of me."

"Did someone else tell you that?" Ianto asked with growing suspicion. "Because if they did..."

"I talked to the Doctor," Jack said softly. Ianto felt his stomach lurch unpleasantly. It was quickly followed by a hot anger.

"He didn't tell you it was your fault, did he? Because if he did..."

"No," Jack whimpered. "Doctor told me I was good. He said I saved your life by pushing you out of the way."

"You did," Ianto agreed, feeling somewhat placated. "I might have been k... hurt a lot worse if you hadn't done that."

To Ianto's dismay, Jack didn't look comforted by the reassurance. Jack pulled away from Ianto a little, and the young man saw something more in Jack's eyes than the usual child-like distress. He saw a very real, palpable fear in the other man's eyes.

"The bad people want to hurt you because of me. If you left me..."

A chill raced down Ianto's spine.

"Jack, don't..."

Jack shook his head wildly, silencing Ianto.

"If you left, they wouldn't have a reason to hurt you anymore. Right?"

Ianto felt something heavy and leaden sitting right in the pit of his stomach.

"Jack, love, what are you trying to say?"

Tears spilled down Jack's cheeks.

"I think I know why you don't want to stay with me. I'm dangerous... aren't I?"

Ianto opened his mouth to protest, but Jack cut him off, and spoke in a tremulous voice.

"It's okay, Yan. I... I understand now. You don't h... have to st... stay with me. I w... won't make you s... stay."

He broke down again, crying helplessly, and it took a moment for Ianto to realise that Jack was not the only one shedding tears.

"Jack... C'mon, Jack, look at me. Look at me, cariad."

Slowly, Jack looked up at him, and as soon as their eyes met, Ianto leaned forward and kissed Jack gently on the lips. His exhaustion and the lingering pain of his injury was, if not necessarily forgotten, pushed to the back of his mind as he tried to keeps Jack's focus on him. He let the kiss linger for a moment before withdrawing, and by then Jack's attention was on him completely.

"Are you listening to me, Jack? Good. Now, my getting hurt was not your fault, not one little bit. The whole truth is that it's because of you that I'm still alive. If I had never met you... if I hadn't gotten that promotion to Secure Archives... then I probably would have been killed along with everyone else when the Cybermen invaded. It's because of you that I'm still here, and still alive, and don't you ever let anyone tell you differently. And as for me wanting to leave because you're dangerous, well that is just rubbish. It's got nothing to do with it, and it isn't that I wanted to leave you, either. I don't want to leave you at all."

"Then why do you keep saying you can't stay with me?" Jack asked plaintively. Ianto sighed, and decided that it was time to lose the kid gloves, and be honest with Jack.

"One day, I am going to die, Jack. It might be tomorrow, or it might be fifty or sixty years from now. I don't know. The only certainty is that I will die." He reached up to cup Jack's tear-stained cheek tenderly. "Cariad, _you_ won't. You'd been alive for a long time before I was even born, and you'll live on long after I'm gone. I thought it would be better for me to leave sooner rather than later, because I thought it would hurt you less than having to watch me die. I was wrong. I can see now that it'll hurt you badly to lose me, no matter how or when it happens. There's nothing I can do to spare you from that, so really the best thing I can do... for the both of us... is to give us as much time together as possible, and for us to make the most of it."

Jack stared at Ianto for so long that he was starting to wonder whether he'd tried to say too much, and that his words had not been comprehended. His fears were allayed when Jack spoke up in a hopeful whisper.

"You... You're not going to go away?"

"No," Ianto assured him. "Not until death takes that choice out of my hands. I promise you that much, at least."

"I promise, too," Jack said as he wiped at his swollen eyes. "I'm never going to leave you, Yan Toe. I love you."

Ianto smiled wearily, quietly conscious that they had just exchanged the equivalent of marriage vows. Till death do they part. Lord, wouldn't his father just love that.

He came back from his musings to realise that Jack was sporting a worried look on his face, and chewing nervously on his lower lip. It was an adorable expression, but it also set alarm bells off in Ianto's mind. The last time he'd seen that look on Jack's face, it had been just before discovering that Jack had tried to help Jackie out by doing the laundry. It had been a disaster to rival the Cyberman invasion.

"Jack? What's wrong?"

Much to Ianto's concern, Jack would no longer meet his gaze.

"I did something bad. I have to tell you, because Rose said it's important to tell the truth when you've done something wrong. But I'm scared that if I tell you, then you'll want to leave me after all."

"Hey, I promised, didn't I?" Ianto reminded him gently. At the same time, his mind was awhirl as he tried to think of what Jack might possibly need to confess, that had him this worried. And as he thought, a memory came to him unbidden; hiding around a corner with Rose, watching as a terrified Jack directed the Cybermen to where Lisa was hiding.

Ianto suppressed a shudder. Jack had betrayed Lisa to the Cybermen. He was positive that he hadn't misinterpreted what he'd seen. Was that what Jack intended on confessing now? If so, he knew he was hardly in the position to stand in judgement over him for it. Even so, he couldn't stop himself from thinking that but for Jack, Lisa would not have had to suffer such a dreadful death...

"I kissed Luke," Jack abruptly. Ianto gaped at him, caught off-guard by the unexpected statement, and all thoughts of Lisa washed momentarily out of his mind.

"You... You _kissed_ him? When?"

"When I showed him our room," Jack admitted meekly. "I told him I love him, and he said he loved me, and I hugged him and kissed him. He didn't like it and he ran out. Then Rose came, and I told her, and she said I wasn't supposed to kiss Luke the same as I kiss grown-ups. She showed me how to kiss Luke on the cheek so it doesn't upset him."

Ianto's eyebrows shot up again.

"She _showed_ you? Did she _show_ you anything else?"

Briefly, Jack's face lit up with a big, almost salacious grin that gave Ianto a momentary glimpse at the man that was hidden behind the childish facade.

"She showed me how grown-ups kiss, like I saw on the TV at Jackie's home."

Ianto honestly didn't know whether to be amused or angry.

"And what did you think?"

"I liked it," Jack said enthusiastically. "Rose tastes nice. Can we kiss like that, too?"

It took some effort to keep his voice even.

"Maybe. Jack..."

"But then Gage came in," Jack went on, and his face fell. "He took Rose out, and when he came back in, I showed him what happened after Rose kissed me, and I think he was mad."

Ianto was positive that if his eyebrows went any higher, they'd reach his hairline.

"Jack, what happened after Rose kissed you?"

Jack hesitated, and then pointed awkwardly to his crotch.

"I got bigger!"

The urge to laugh hysterically bubbled up inside Ianto, and he nearly gagged in his effort to suppress it.

"You did, did you?"

Jack nodded, and suddenly he looked as though he was going to cry again.

"Gage told me I had to have a cold shower. Does that mean it was a bad thing?"

And suddenly, Jack's earlier hysterics at his parents' home made painful sense. Gage, he suspected, had probably not stopped to think about what he was saying when talking about a cold shower. In fact, Ianto supposed he couldn't blame the poor bloke at all for being flustered, being faced with child-like Jack with an erection. It would have been like trying to explain sex to a five year-old.

Despite initial reservations, he felt that Rose had done the right thing to show Jack that certain displays of affection weren't appropriate with kids like Luke. It was just unfortunate that Gage had been left to deal with the consequences of that little practical lesson.

"No, Jack, it wasn't a bad thing. Gage wasn't mad at you, either. He just didn't think it through properly."

"But he said I had to..."

"I know, I know." Ianto decided to plunge forward and just continue being direct. "Jack, what you had was an erection. It happens to every man. When you become aroused... or excited... blood flows into your penis and makes it bigger and harder. That's called an erection."

Jack frowned, seemingly oblivious to the deep shade of red that Ianto's face had gone.

"Rose excited me?"

Ianto shut his eyes briefly, trying to regain some degree of composure. He hoped to God that the Doctor never got wind of _this_ particular conversation. Even he knew there was far more than just simple friendship between Rose and the Doctor.

"Yes, Jack. I suppose you could say that."

"Oh. So... what am I supposed to do with it?"

Ianto wanted to crawl under the bedcovers, and hide. How he had worked himself into a corner like this, he really had no idea.

"That depends, Jack. It depends on who you're with, and whether they're as excited by you, as you are by them. If they are, and you're both consenting adults, then it will probably end with you having sex. And please, don't ask me to explain sex to you yet, because I'm not sure that _I'm_ ready to deal with that topic."

Jack nodded, wide-eyed.

"Okay, Yan. But... why did Gage said I needed a cold shower?"

"Because, love, a cold shower is a fairly standard way of getting rid of an unwanted erection. Gage wasn't angry at you, and he wasn't trying to be mean. I think he just wasn't thinking when he said it."

The relief in Jack's face was palpable as it dawned on him that no one was mad at him after all.

"So... I wasn't bad?"

Ianto smiled, and leaned in to kiss Jack lightly on the forehead.

"No, Jack. You weren't bad." He leaned back, and shuffled over to make room in the bed for Jack. The immortal uttered a happy noise and lay down beside Ianto, although taking care not to jostle Ianto and hurt him in any way. Ianto slid his arms around Jack, smiling to himself at the way they seemed to fit together so neatly.

"Love you, Yan," Jack mumbled, burying his face in the crook of Ianto's shoulder. Ianto stroked his hand up and down Jack's arm.

"I love you, too, Jack."

And for the first time since that fateful day of his promotion to Secure Archives, Ianto felt completely at peace with himself, and his choices.

* * *

_to be continued..._


	33. Compromises & Proposals

"For the last time, Jack, will you stop pulling at that!"

Jack's hands dropped immediately to his sides, but Ianto could see his fingers twitching, just itching to start fiddling with the offending item.

"Now, just leave it alone," Ianto told him sternly. Jack's face screwed up into a frown.

"But I don't like it! Why do I have to wear it?"

"Because the Doctor is taking us to meet someone," Ianto explained, "and we want to make a good impression. You might not like wearing a tie, love, but it's important that you look your best. Okay?"

The frown didn't diminish in the slightest.

"Who are we meeting?"

"I don't know," Ianto admitted. "Just someone that the Doctor thinks will be able to help protect you from UNIT."

"And you too," Jack insisted, his eyes widening with borderline panic. "You too, right, Yan?"

"Yes, me too," Ianto reassured him, and Jack looked appeased for the moment. Ianto started to adjust his own tie, and so it took him a moment to realise that Jack's hands were once more creeping back up towards the offending apparel. Resisting a nearly overwhelming urge to slap Jack's hands away, Ianto instead reached out and pushed them down gently.

"Jack, please. Do this for me, just this once, and I'll never make you wear a tie again, I promise."

Jack pouted, but dropped his hands obediently back to his sides.

"Okay. Yan, where's Gage?"

"I don't know," Ianto murmured, trying hard not to feel too concerned at his friend's absence. The truth was, it was two days since he'd first woken up after being shot, and he had not seen Gage once. Granted, the TARDIS was an awfully big ship, but he hadn't thought the other man could have kept completely out of sight for so long. He just hoped Gage wasn't beating himself up too badly over what had happened with Jack. It really was no one's fault.

His concerns faded as he checked his own appearance in a full length mirror. The charcoal grey suit he wore was a little bland for his own personal tastes, but he'd opted to wear it instead of the black, pin-striped suit he'd originally chosen mainly because of Jack's reaction. Jack had, with all the subtlety of a brick, declared the grey suit to be boring, whilst the pin-striped one had resulted in Jack asking a little too eagerly if they could try the grown-up kissing now.

Ianto had decided to opt to discretion, and chose the 'boring suit' in the hopes of avoiding any embarrassing displays. The last thing he needed was for Jack to get… _excited_ whilst they were meeting with the Doctor's mysterious friend.

Finishing his own personal adjustments, Ianto turned back to find Jack was gone, and his suit jacket abandoned.

"Jack?" Ianto turned around in growing frustration, searching for his errant charge. "Jack, where have you gone?"

Movement behind him prompted him to turn, and Jack appeared from out of the multitudes of clothing racks, wearing a light brown, fitted leather jacket that clashed spectacularly with the rest of his attire. A bright grin adorned his face, and he looked thoroughly pleased with himself.

"Look what I found! Can I wear it, Yan? Please?"

Ianto wanted to groan.

"Not this time, Jack. Maybe next time. This time, can you please just wear the clothes I picked for you?"

Jack's face fell, and Ianto felt like he'd just kicked a puppy.

"Listen, how about we compromise?"

Jack's face creased into a frown.

"That's where you agree to something I want, and I agree to something you want. Right?"

Ianto smiled, pleased. Jack's understanding of the word may have only been rudimentary, but he did at least understand.

"That's right. Now, you already know what I want."

Jack didn't speak, but mournfully removed the leather jacket and put on the suit jacket instead. To reward him, Ianto stepped in close and captured Jack's lips in a chaste, but lingering kiss.

"Thankyou, love. Now, you tell me what you'd like me to agree to."

His smile widened a little as Jack's screwed up adorably.

"I think I'd like..."

"Yes?" Ianto prompted him. Jack opened his eyes and looked at him shyly.

"I'd like it if you kissed me."

Ianto felt a strange flutter go through him that he couldn't quite identify. He supposed he should have anticipated such a request, and he was bemused to realise that the idea of properly snogging another bloke didn't make him anywhere near as uncomfortable as he thought it might have. He found himself agreeing, and not just for the purpose of keeping to the spirit of their compromise.

"All right, Jack. If that's what you really want."

Jack grinned and stepped towards Ianto eagerly, only to be halted in his tracks by Ianto's hands on his chest.

"But not yet. That is something for when we come back to the TARDIS afterwards."

Jack looked momentarily disappointed, but the expression quickly shifted as new understanding dawned.

"You mean, in case I get excited again?"

Ianto nearly choked. He once again got that unsettling feeling that he was very steadily digging himself into a very deep hole, with no obvious way out.

"That's one reason, yes," he conceded. "C'mon, now. The Doctor and Rose will be waiting."

* * *

The Doctor's eyebrows rose when Jack and Ianto emerged into the control room, and an amused grin lit up his face.

"I'm impressed. You both look good, and you don't even know who it is that we're meeting with."

"All the more reason to look our best," Ianto reasoned. "Jack, stop fiddling with that tie!"

"It's too tight," Jack whined, although he obediently dropped his hands. Ianto huffed, but consented and loosened the knot a little.

"There. Better?"

Jack nodded, pacified.

"Do you mind me asking how you managed to convince him to wear a suit?" the Doctor wondered. Much to Ianto's mortification, Jack spoke up enthusiastically.

"We compromised! I said I'll wear these clothes, and when we come back, Yan is going to kiss me!"

"Is he?" the Doctor murmured, not even trying to hide a smirk at the vibrant shade of red that Ianto had turned.

"A proper, grown-up kiss," Jack clarified with utter seriousness. Ianto's blush deepened, and the Doctor's smirk blossomed into a full-blown grin.

"Well, you're very lucky then, aren't you?"

Looking thoroughly pleased with himself, Jack wandered off to the other side of the control room.

"Please," Ianto begged once he was sure that Jack was not paying them any attention. "Don't encourage him. This is awkward enough as it is. I already feel like I'm taking advantage of him."

The Doctor chuckled fondly and shook his head.

"You're not, Ianto. I promise you that. All of this? It's positively tame for the Jack Harkness I knew."

Ianto, however, was not appeased.

"But that's the point, isn't it? This man _isn't_ the Jack Harkness that you knew. He's a different person. This person that we have here and now is really only a child, and I don't want to do anything that's going to damage him mentally or emotionally. He isn't ready to deal with adult concepts like sex!"

The Doctor regarded him quizzically with a penetrating stare.

"He's not, or you're not? Because from what I've see so far, Jack is coping just fine with the way his body is waking up sexually. All he needs is someone who isn't afraid to show him the way."

"Then why don't you do it?" Ianto grumbled sourly, irritated that the Doctor wasn't seeing the issue from his perspective. Abruptly, the Time Lord's expression turned sombre.

"Not a good idea. Believe me, it's really not."

Ianto couldn't resist taking a shot.

"Why? Because you can't stand to be that close to him?"

"I'm working on that," the Doctor said, a touch defensively. "But that isn't what I meant. I love Jack. I will always love him, but I could never satisfy him sexually. Even if I were to give that part of myself to him, he'd know it was a lie. He deserves better. You and I both know that, Ianto."

"So where does that leave me?" Ianto wondered. The Doctor smiled in sympathy.

"You love him, don't you?"

"Well, yes, but…"

"He already loves you wholeheartedly, Ianto. He's just waiting for you to get over your twenty-first century hang-ups, and catch up. Even if you're still trying to come to terms with how you feel."

Ianto bristled a little.

"You really think it matters to me that we're both men? It doesn't. What matters to me is that I don't mislead Jack. I know he loves me. I just don't know if I love him in the same way."

"Then why did you promise to kiss him in return for him wearing that suit?"

Ianto couldn't answer, and was saved from having to try by Jack rejoining them.

"Are we going yet? This is boring."

"Yes, Jack," the Doctor reassured him. "As soon as Rose gets here, we'll go."

Jack frowned a little.

"And Gage. Don't forget Gage."

There was no mistaking it that time. The Doctor flinched.

"Gage decided not to join us," the Doctor answered with a discomfort that only Ianto saw. "And here is Rose, so we can go now!"

"What are you hiding?" Ianto asked in a whisper as they headed for the door.

"Not now," the Doctor warned him. "Let's do this, and I'll explain later."

Ianto was less than thrilled, but he knew it would benefit no one to make a fuss. Most of all, he wanted to avoid Jack getting into any sort of a state. Glaring briefly at the Doctor, he took the hand that Jack was holding out to him expectantly and followed Rose out of the TARDIS.

* * *

The brightness of the sun had Ianto pausing to blink hard before his eyes managed to focus on their surroundings. It took a moment to register their location, and when it did, Ianto uttered a strangled gasp of shock.

"This is Buckingham Palace!"

"Very good, Ianto," the Doctor said with a grin. Ianto whirled to face him in borderline panic.

"What are we doing here? UNIT will know!"

"Calm down," the Doctor told him firmly. "There's nothing to worry about. I called ahead… well, so to speak… and made arrangements. We're expected, and neither UNIT nor anyone else with an unhealthy interest in Jack will be allowed anywhere near us. My friend promised."

Ianto let his breath out in a long hiss.

"Doctor, who _is_ this friend of yours?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow and smiled a little as he looked past Ianto. The young Welshman turned to find a contingent of the Royal Guard approaching. They halted in perfect synchronicity, and the lead guard spoke formally to the Time Lord.

"Doctor, welcome back to Buckingham Palace. If you and your companions will follow us, Her Majesty is waiting for you."

Still grinning, the Doctor ignored Ianto's slack-jawed expression, and responded cheerfully.

"Lead on, my good man. Alonzy!"

* * *

They were led into Buckingham Palace and through a maze of lavish corridors. The pace set by the guards was brisk, and Ianto found he had to tug regularly on Jack's hand to ensure he kept up.

Ianto honestly didn't know what to expect, and so he wasn't sure whether to be surprised or not when they were escorted into a large but cosy room filled with armchairs, sofas and a large open fire that filled the room with warmth.

"Your Majesty," the guard intoned. "The Doctor, and his companions."

Ianto did a double-take as his gaze finally came to rest on the regal lady seated in the armchair closest to the fire. Again, he hadn't really known what to expect, but he hadn't expected someone who looked quite so… grandmotherly. The Doctor was greeting her with his usual zest, and even through his own state of shock, Ianto could see the warm glow of affection in her eyes as she responded in kind.

They weren't merely acquaintances, he realised. They were friends.

"Doctor, if you would be so kind as to introduce your companions?"

"Of course," the Doctor burst out, looking only mildly embarrassed at having not done so straight away. "This is Miss Rose Tyler, formally of the Powell Estate in London, Mr Ianto Jones from Wales, and Captain Jack Harkness, a former Time Agent from the fifty-first century."

As they were introduced, Rose curtsied and Ianto bowed. When the Doctor introduced Jack, though, the immortal looked at the Doctor in confused surprise.

"I am?"

"Jack, you need to bow," Ianto whispered anxiously. This time, the confusion was directed towards Ianto.

"I do? How come?"

"Trust me," Ianto hissed. He could feel his face heating up under the monarch's scrutiny, and he dared not look at her for fear of seeing disapproval. He was going to kill the Doctor for springing this surprise on them. "This is a very, very important lady. You need to be polite, and bow."

Jack gaped momentarily at Her Majesty before attempting a somewhat clumsy to imitate Ianto's bow. He went too low, too quickly, and toppled over before Ianto could stop him. His head cracked his the table with a resounding crack, and Jack landed in the floor in a heap. For several seconds there was absolute silence. Then, Jack's face crumpled and he burst into tears, his hands coming up to cover the spot that had struck the edge of the table.

"I'm sorry," Ianto gasped, not totally sure exactly who he was going apologising to. "I'm so sorry... I'll... I'll take him back to the TARDIS..."

"Nonsense. Let me see, please."

Ianto fell back, and watched in open-mouthed shock as Her Majesty rose gracefully from her chair and came to stand in front of Jack. She observed him for a moment before leaning down, taking his face gently between her palms, and kissing the spot where he'd banged his head.

Jack's sobs faded quickly, and he looked up at her through a film of tears.

"There now," the Queen said with a warm smile. "No harm done. You just gave yourself a fright more than anything, didn't you? Doctor, I'm sure you have a handkerchief buried somewhere in those pockets of yours. Perhaps you could let Jack have one to wipe his eyes. Then, perhaps we can all sit down and have a lovely afternoon tea. Jack, dear, do you like lemonade?"

Jack's face lit up and he nodded eagerly as Ianto gently wiped his tear-streaked face clean.

"Yes, please! Thankyou!" He then turned to Ianto and whispered loudly, "She's a nice lady. I like her."

Ianto smiled wryly.

"Thankyou, Ma'am. You may have just won him over for life."

She smiled sadly in response as Ianto helped Jack up and guided him to sit on one of the two-seater couches.

"Believe me, Mr Jones. It's the very least I can do, considering that I failed to help him once before."

Silence met the monarch's statement, and even the Doctor looked puzzled. Jack alone appeared oblivious; his attention was very firmly on the afternoon tea being wheeled into the room.

"Let's have refreshments," she told them, "and then I shall explain."

* * *

Half an hour later, the Queen began to talk. Jack was still working his way through a plate that he'd piled high with sandwiches, cakes and fruit, and fussed loudly when Ianto tried to take it off him.

"It's quite all right, Mr Jones," she told him. "Let him eat. I'm pleased that he's enjoying himself."

Bemused, Ianto conceded and let Jack keep his plate.

"Excuse me, Ma'am," Rose said cautiously, "but are you telling us that you already knew about Jack?"

"At the start of World War II," she told them soberly, "I went with my father to Cardiff to inspect the Torchwood facility there. It was hoped that they might have had some advanced technology that we could use to bring the war to a quick conclusion. That was not to be, unfortunately. Whilst we were there, however, the man who was in charge took a great deal of pleasure in showing us what he called the anomaly."

"Jack," the Doctor said tightly.

"Yes, I'm afraid so. Worse, he took even greater delight in showing the many different ways that Jack could be killed, and still come back to life. His excuse was that he was testing the limits of his immortality, and trying to see whether it could be transferred to our soldiers. I was horrified by it, and I asked my father that night to do something to help. He said there was nothing we could do, and that what Torchwood did was far too important to interfere on behalf of one man who was not even confirmed to be completely human. The good of the many outweighed the good of the one, he told me, although I'm not entirely certain that he truly believed it himself. I could have argued. I _should_ have argued but I chose to say no more about the issue. Then, when I assumed the throne myself, I did the unthinkable, and I forgot about him. When the Torchwood facility in Cardiff was reported abandoned, I immediately sent a contingent of the Royal Guard to Cardiff to search for Jack, but it was too late. He was already gone."

"Excuse me, Ma'am," Ianto said politely, "but it would have made no difference how quickly your guards arrived. Jack was taken from Cardiff to London back in 1993, so that the London facility could conduct experiments of their own on him."

"I feared as much," the Queen admitted. "I'm ashamed to admit that I never attempted to find out, either. It simply always seemed that I had more important business to attend to. Then the Battle of Canary Wharf happened, and I feared the worst." She regarded Jack with an affectionate smile. "I can't begin to express how glad I am to see him safe. Indeed, all of you."

"Actually, that's why we're here," the Doctor said. "Right now, he still isn't completely safe. It isn't Torchwood that's the threat, though. It's UNIT."

"For what purpose would UNIT want him?"

"The same reason that Torchwood wanted him, I suppose. To experiment on him. To lock him up indefinitely. Both of which are unacceptable possibilities."

The Queen nodded.

"I wholeheartedly agree. I must ask, though. Are the authorities in UNIT aware that Jack is currently in your care?"

"They know," the Doctor confirmed. "It doesn't seem to matter to them, though. I took Ianto to visit his parents in Newport a few days ago, and he and Jack barely escaped a UNIT ambush."

"They shot Jack in the head," Ianto said heatedly. "I was shot in the side."

"Are you all right now?" the Queen asked, looking in concern from Jack to Ianto.

"Yes, Ma'am," Ianto murmured. "The Doctor is right, though. UNIT are determined to have Jack, and they don't care that he'd in the Doctor's care."

"They don't see him as human," Rose added vehemently. "They just see him as somethin' unnatural that has to be locked up."

The Queen looked back at Jack, who had finally abandoned his plate of treats, and was looking around at each of them warily – as though he understood they were talking about him, but didn't know why.

"Jack," the Queen said in a gentle tone that nevertheless reflected the authority that she wielded. "I'd like you to answer a question for me. Will you do that?"

Jack nodded, eager to please the kind lady who had kissed his sore head better, and given him lemonade and treats.

"You say 'Yes, Ma'am'," Ianto murmured.

"Oh," Jack gulped. "I'm sorry. Yes, Ma'am."

She smiled.

"Tell me, Jack. If I were to give you a choice, who would you like to stay with? Who would you like to have take care of you?"

Jack looked confused. He clutched at Ianto's hand, as though suddenly afraid that Ianto would vanish on him.

"Yan toe takes care of me. He's staying with me. He promised he would."

"It isn't finding someone to take care of him that's the problem, Ma'am," Ianto answered as Jack cuddled in against him. "I'll take care of him. I promised that I would for as long as he needs it."

"You see," the Doctor said, "Jack's memories have been suppressed by his years in captivity. I'm hoping I'll be able to restore those memories. He wasn't always in this child-like frame of mind. I believe that the man Rose and I once knew is still buried in there somewhere, and I hope to be able to help him resurface, so that Jack can finally be in control of his own life."

"Assuming you do achieve that, what will happen then?"

"Well, that's why we're here," the Doctor said. "Of course, Jack is welcome to stay on the TARDIS for as long as he wants, but somehow I doubt he will want to. I want to be certain that Jack will be protected from any agencies on Earth that might want to harm him, control him or simply lock him up because he isn't like any other human on this planet. Starting with UNIT."

The Queen smiled knowingly. Although UNIT was not exclusively a British agency, she still hold a great deal of power over it. She did not often exercise that power, but it was still there at her behest.

"Consider it done, Doctor." She looked back over at Jack. "UNIT will no longer be a bother to you, Jack, I promise."

That look of growing adoration was back in Jack's eyes as he started shyly at the Queen.

"Thankyou."

* * *

"I would like you to consider a proposal, Doctor," the Queen said a while later. She and the Doctor stood on the far side of the room, talking quietly. Jack had dozed off a while ago and was currently snuggled adorably into Ianto's side, much to the younger man's embarrassment. The Queen had refused to allow him to be disturbed, though, saying he deserved the opportunity to sleep whenever he wanted, given that he'd suffered for more than a century not getting any sort of decent rest.

And so Ianto and Rose kept watch over Jack while the Queen and the Doctor retreated to the far side of the room to carry on their conversation.

"What sort of proposal?"

"When you restore the Captain's memories, and his mind, you expect that he will want to stay on Earth, don't you?"

"I expect that Ianto will want to stay on Earth," the Doctor answered. "I expect that Jack will choose to follow Ianto's lead."

She looked back at Ianto thoughtfully.

"He does love that young man, doesn't he?"

"Yes, he does. Ianto showed him kindness and care when no one else did. Jack will do anything for Ianto, including die for him."

"The attack by UNIT?"

"It was an attempt to kill Ianto," the Doctor explained. "I suspected the idea was to destabilise Jack by taking Ianto out of the equation. If I _ever_ find out who authorised it, Rassilon help them."

"I promise to put an end to that threat, Doctor. Coming back to the Captain, though, I have a proposal that I hope you will consider putting to him, should you be successful in restoring his mind."

"What proposal?" the Doctor asked, starting to feel slightly suspicious.

"I do not wish to shut down Torchwood."

The Doctor froze, and his expression quickly darkened.

"After everything they did, and all the people who died, you can't seriously expect me to allow it to continue operating!"

"As it was? No. What I'm proposing, Doctor, is an entirely new Torchwood, with a new charter and a new focus. Torchwood London is finished. It was destroyed in the battle, and I will not permit it to be rebuilt. The Cardiff facility is still there, however, as is the rift that it was built to monitor. It only needs someone to take charge of it."

The Doctor's expression was inscrutable.

"Someone like Jack, you mean. Let's be clear about this. Jack was locked up in that place like an animal for nearly a hundred years, and you want to send him back there?"

To her credit, the monarch didn't so much as blink in the face of the Time Lord's anger.

"I want him to have the opportunity to consider it," she replied seriously. "If he then decides he does not want to do it, then I shan't force him into it. Don't you see, though, Doctor? Who better to turn Torchwood around and put it on a new path than someone such as Captain Harkness?"

"This is all just speculation. I may not have any success restoring his mind."

"I understand. Will you consider it, though?"

"If he recovers completely, and if I don't think he'd use it for revenge, then yes. I'll put the proposition to him. Good enough?"

"Good enough. Doctor, what are his chances for recovery?"

The Doctor looked over to where Ianto was holding Jack as he dozed.

"I don't know. The memories are there, but they're buried under so many layers of trauma... I just don't know if he'll ever recover from it. Not completely."

"I suppose it depends, doesn't it, Doctor?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, it depends on how you define recovery. If you determine the success of his recovery on whether he once again becomes the man you remember, then I imagine his chances of recovery are slim. Trauma changes a person, Doctor. You know that from personal experiences. Jack has experienced a trauma that extended over the course of more than one hundred years. I sincerely doubt that he will ever be the same as he was prior to his captivity, but whether that is a good thing or a bad thing is going to be up to you and your companions."

* * *

They returned to the TARDIS after witnessing Her Majesty place a direct call to the head of UNIT. She informed the General that Jack Harkness, former prisoner of Torchwood, and Ianto Jones, former Torchwood employee, were both under the protection of the Crown, and she would not tolerate any further attempts by UNIT to stymie their new-found freedom.

The General politely reminded the Queen that she did not, in fact, have the authority to dictate to UNIT. She reminded him equally politely that the United Nations _did_, and that she would willingly advocate sanctions against the agency if they didn't completely withdraw their attempts to secure Jack.

Ianto and Rose had listened in awe, while the Doctor just grinned proudly.

Departing from Her Majesty's presence had also proven to be an experience in itself. The Doctor and Ianto had bowed, and Rose had curtsied again. Jack, however, had gazed at her shyly before asking if he could hug her. Her pleasure at his request was undeniable, and she hadn't hesitated to initiate a hug.

When they finally left, Jack was as happy as Ianto could ever remember seeing him, with a beautiful smile lighting up his face.

"That went well," Rose commented, smiling as Jack rushed off to his room to get his dog. Ianto had, with some difficulty, convinced him to leave it behind in the TARDIS whilst they were gone.

"It did, didn't it?" the Doctor said with a smug grin. Ianto nodded.

"I have to admit, it worked out well, even though I thought it was going to be a disaster at first."

Rose giggled.

"Poor Jack. I thought that was it when he fell and bumped his head. Never expected her to react like that!"

"Oh, please," the Doctor retorted. "She's a mother _and_ a grandmother. She's probably soothed more bumps and bruises than you could imagine."

"Never thought about her like that, but yeah, you're right," Rose agreed. "You were right about taking Jack to see her as soon as possible."

Ianto turned slowly to stare piercingly at the Time Lord.

"Doctor? What does she mean?"

The Doctor was unapologetic as he explained.

"I want Jack to be safe from UNIT, the same as you. Since they clearly aren't paying any heed to me this time, I knew I'd need to get a more Earth-based authority on side. I wanted to get Jack to her when I could be sure there was no risk of him flirting with her!"

Ianto sighed.

"I think I'm probably not as mad at you as I could be because it worked. Tell me, though. Were you really unaware that she knew about Jack? That she'd seen him?"

"I didn't know," the Doctor insisted. "She never said anything, not in all the time I've known her."

"I suppose it doesn't really matter now," Ianto conceded. He looked quizzically at the Doctor, finally daring to ask what he knew was a loaded question.

"It can't be changed, can it?"

"No," the Doctor answered soberly, knowing full well what Ianto meant. "I can't change the fact that Jack spent all that time as a prisoner of Torchwood anymore than I can change the fact that I left him behind on Satellite Five. Both are established events now. If I tried to change them, it could create a paradox that could destroy the universe. I'm sorry, Ianto. I truly am."

Ianto sighed.

"No point dwelling on the past, and you at least didn't run from him at Canary Wharf, even though you could have done."

The Doctor looked torn between amusement and indignation.

"Did you expect me to?"

"In all honest? Yes, I did. When Rose went to find you, after it was all over, I really weren't sure if you'd just take Rose and abandon us to UNIT."

"Oi!" Rose protested. "You think I would've let him do that to Jack again?"

"No offense, Rose," Ianto told her gently, "but I think that if he'd really wanted to run from Jack again, you couldn't have stopped him."

She frowned, but didn't argue further.

"I admit that I'm still uncomfortable around him," the Doctor conceded. "It's gradually getting better, thought, and I promise that I will never run from him again."

"Good enough," Ianto said. The Doctor grinned, then, looking for all the world like a hyperactive ten year-old.

"Right, then! Back into the vortex, then! Or, better yet, perhaps I could find us a nice, uninhabited world somewhere with lots of sun? Cottage by the sea, maybe? What do you think, hmm? Think Jack would like that?"

"Just a moment, Doctor," Ianto interrupted him quietly. "Before we go anywhere at all, I want you to tell me where Gage is."

The Doctor's face promptly clouded over, confirming Ianto's suspicions.

"He's not in the TARDIS anymore, is he?"

"He asked me to take him home," the Doctor replied. "Back to Ireland. It was while you were recovering from being shot. Jack never noticed because he spent most of that time at your side. I tried to talk him out of it, Ianto. I really did. I told him he ought to at least wait and talk to you, but he'd made up his mind."

"Well, why didn't you stop him?" Ianto burst out. His mind was in a whirl as he was immediately assaulted by panicked thoughts of what he was going to tell Jack. "You could've... I don't know, locked him in his room!"

"I will not force anyone to stay here if they really don't want to stay," the Doctor said. "Gage chose to go. I'm sorry that he wouldn't wait an extra couple of days, but I respect his right to make that choice."

"Oh, that's just rich," Ianto spat, allowing his temper to get the better of him. "You talk like that now, but you didn't exactly respect Jack when you abandoned him, did you?"

The Doctor's jaw tightened, but even before he had the chance to respond, Ianto was already expressing regret for his ill-spoken remark.

"I'm sorry," the young Welshman said quietly. "I had no right to say that. It's just... this is going to hurt Jack so much! He's going to think Gage left because of him, and I'm not sure I'll be able to convince him otherwise!"

"We'll convince him together," the Doctor promised. "It isn't exclusively your responsibility anymore to look after Jack. That responsibility belongs to all of us."

"S'pose we'd better find him, then, yeah?" Rose said. "He's bound to be looking for Gage."

"Yeah," Ianto murmured, sounding despondent as he looked. "We'd better do that."

* * *

They found Jack in the garden. He sat by the stream with his toy dog tucked up in one arm, and his blanket in the other. Lying open on the grass in front of him was the book of Irish folktales that had belonged to Gage. As they approached, he looked up with a bright smile.

"Where is Gage? I want him to read to me. I like it when he reads to me."

Ianto looked stricken, but didn't try to avoid the subject. Sitting down beside Jack, Ianto took the immortal's hand in his own.

"Jack, love, Gage isn't here. He left the TARDIS while I was still sick in the med bay."

Jack's smile faltered.

"Oh... So... When will he be back?"

"He won't be back," Ianto answered, and felt downright lousy at the dismay on Jack's face. "He's decided to leave the TARDIS, and I'm afraid he won't be coming back."

Ianto fully expected Jack to burst into tears right then and there. He didn't, but his eyes were filled with tears that were threatening to fall at any moment.

"Doctor?" Jack asked in a trembling voice. The Time Lord came forward.

"Yes, Jack?"

"We can go get him, can't we? We'll get him and bring him back, and I'll say sorry and everything will be okay."

The Doctor felt both his hearts breaking at Jack's plea.

"I'm sorry, Jack, but it was Gage's decision. He chose to leave, and I can't make him come back."

The first tears began to work their way out of his eyes.

"But... I'll say sorry! I promise I will! And that will make everything better, and Gage won't be mad at me anymore..."

The tears finally came, and Jack began to cry in earnest.

"Sweetheart, he's not mad at you," Ianto told him. "I'm positive he's not mad at you," the Doctor added, joining them on the grass.

"But why did he go?" Jack asked plaintively in between hiccoughing sobs. "Doesn't he like me anymore?"

"Jack, it's not your fault at all," the Doctor insisted. "I think that perhaps, Gage just began to miss his own family and his home, and he didn't want to stay away any longer."

Jack stared miserably at the Doctor.

"It wasn't because of me?"

"No. It wasn't because of you."

There was silence, and they could all see Jack's mind working hard, trying to understand.

"But... he could've just visited, like Yan did. We could go and get him later, when he's had a visit!"

The Doctor wanted to weep at the hopeful look on Jack's face. He knew now why Ianto had dreaded facing Jack over this.

"Jack, I am sorry. Gage wanted to go home for good. He doesn't want to come back."

Jack's face crumpled, and Ianto quickly pulled him into a fierce hug, letting Jack sob into his shoulder.

"You'd better go," Ianto murmured. "Both of you. Let me look after him."

"You sure?" Rose asked anxiously.

"Positive."

Ianto tried to smile, but it wouldn't come.

"I'll take us into the vortex," the Doctor told him. "Hopefully he'll be a bit more settled by tomorrow, and then I think we'll see what we can do about starting to get his memories back."

Ianto paid little heed to the Doctor, and was barely aware of him and Rose leaving. His focus was on Jack, and Jack alone. He continued to hug Jack to him, not making any attempt to talk, and all the while trying to think of a way to soothe his miserable charge.

There was nothing he could say. Right then, Jack was inconsolable, and Ianto knew that despite their attempts to convince him otherwise, Jack still believed he was to blame in some way for Gage's departure. Right at that moment, Ianto hated Gage for the grief that he was causing Jack.

Gradually, he became aware of Jack's arms sneaking around his body, and holding onto his with a vice-like grip.

"Jack," Ianto murmured as the strength of Jack's hold on him began to be uncomfortable. "Love, I need you to ease up. You're squeezing me a little too tight. Jack, please..."

"Everybody leaves," Jack said abruptly, his voice muffled by Ianto's shoulder. Ianto froze.

"What was that?"

Jack lifted his head just a little in a grief-stricken voice.

"Everybody leaves me. Doctor left me. Rose left me. Gage left me. You'll leave me!"

"Jack, no! I promised I wouldn't, remember?"

"What's wrong with me, Yan? Why does everybody leave me?"

Ianto gently detached himself from Jack's hold, and shifted around so that he was kneeling opposite him, and facing him directly. Jack's eyes were red and swollen already from crying, and his face was a mess. Ianto tutted softly, and pulled a handkerchief from his pocket to gently clean his face.

"Now look at me, Jack. Look at me and listen. I am not going to leave you. Not as long as I have any choice in the matter. I already promised you that, and I keep my promises. Do you believe me, Jack?"

Jack didn't answer. Ianto could see in his eyes that he desperately wanted to believe, but simply didn't dare to. Too many times, Ianto thought sadly. He'd been hurt so often by others, that he still did not really trust anyone to stay with him. Gage's departure hadn't caused this sudden bout of insecurity and depression. That had been there all along, and Gage leaving had just brought it to the surface where they could all see it.

"Nothing's wrong with you, Jack," Ianto told him fiercely. "Do you hear me? Nothing is wrong with you."

Jack looked up at Ianto once more, and Ianto acted before he lost his courage and resolve. Leaning in, he slipped one hand behind Jack's head, and closed the remaining distance between them to seal Jack's mouth with his own.

Ianto felt more than heard Jack's squeak of surprise, and fought back a grin. Instead, he took the opportunity and deepened the kiss, pushing his tongue gently into Jack's unresisting mouth to lightly stroke his tongue.

Jack tasted like nothing Ianto had ever before experienced. It was like getting an adrenalin shot straight into his groin, and he found himself moaning into the kiss as his arousal levels shot up. At first, there was no reaction from Jack, and Ianto wondered whether he had perhaps made a mistake. Then, Jack's arms tightened around his body once more, and it was suddenly Ianto's turn to utter an unmanly sound as Jack responded with renewed enthusiasm.

How long it lasted, Ianto had no idea. He quickly lost all sense of time as he and Jack plundered each other's mouths in turn. It was less erotic, though, than reassuring. There was comfort in the embrace and the kiss, and Ianto could sense Jack taking consolation in it as much as he was.

When they finally separated, Ianto took a moment to take in Jack's expression. There was still a world of hurt there, but Ianto could also see a renewal of hope. He hadn't been wrong. Jack needed physical comfort as much as verbal comfort.

"I miss him," Jack whispered softly. Ianto leaned his forehead lightly against Jack's, and reached up to rub his shoulders soothingly.

"I know, love. So do I, and that's okay. It's okay to miss him, and maybe we'll be lucky enough to see him again some day. But now we have to move on. You're not alone, though. Gage might have gone, but you're not alone. I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. I promised you. Have I ever my promises to you, Jack?"

"No," Jack conceded.

"There you go, then," Ianto said with a soft smile. "C'mon, then. How about we go and find the Doctor?"

"Not yet," Jack pled. "Please, can we stay here just a little longer?"

Ianto shrugged a little noncommittally.

"If you like." He shifted around and lay down on the cool grass, and Jack did the same, so that they were lying side by side, and face to face.

"I liked it," Jack admitted tentatively. Ianto couldn't stop the smile that quirked his lips. He knew what Jack was talking about.

"I liked it too," he confessed, and quietly relished the renewed spark that lit up in Jack's eyes.

"Can we maybe do it again some time?"

Ianto's smile widened a little.

"Yeah. I think that maybe we can probably do it again some time."

Jack hummed a little in pleasure, and then reached out to snag the book that had been abandoned beside him.

"Yan?"

"What is it, Jack?"

"Can you read to me, Yan?"

Ianto smiled and pushed himself back up into a sitting position, and took the book. He opened it up to the page marked by a simple bookmark with a picture of a dog on it that Jack had taken a particular liking to.

"I'll read to you, Jack. Of course I will."

* * *

_to be continued..._


	34. Telling Stories

Ianto awoke the next morning to the sound of quiet, miserable sniffles. He turned over, and Jack came into sight. He sat at the little table in their room, flipping slowly through the Irish folktales book, and occasionally wiping tears away from his eyes. This wasn't the loud, open distress that he'd displayed the previous day, but rather a very quiet and private grieving. Ianto almost felt as though he was intruding when he went to Jack's side.

"I really miss him," Jack said miserably as Ianto's arm slipped around his shoulders. "I wish he'd come back. I want to tell him I'm sorry."

Ianto pressed his lips gently to Jack's temple.

"I keep telling you, love. You don't have anything to apologise for. If we ever see Gage again, I think he's the one who needs to apologise to you. You didn't do anything wrong, and I'm positive that he was not mad at you." Ianto sighed. "I just wish I could get you to understand that. C'mon, now. We'll have a wash and get dressed, and go and have breakfast."

"I don't want pancakes," Jack said as Ianto ushered him up. "Gage made me pancakes. I don't want them from anyone else."

Ianto sighed again, but conceded.

"All right, Jack. No pancakes."

* * *

After a somewhat subdued breakfast, the Doctor ushered them all to the library, and urged them all to get comfortable.

"I promised to try and restore your mind, Jack," he told the immortal. Jack looked more than a little worried.

"Why? What's wrong with it?"

Ignoring the strained look on Ianto's face, and the amused one on Rose's, the Doctor crouched down in front of Jack and offered him a smile that was full of love and affection.

"There is nothing is wrong with you that we can't fix, Jack, and none of it is your fault. Torchwood took your prisoner over one hundred years ago. They took away your freedom, and your identity. They tried to take your humanity and turn you into a… a thing to be experimented on and tormented. To survive, you buried who you are deep down within your own mind, and you reverted back to your most base instincts. You did that to try and minimise the hurt that they caused you, and that's where you were at when Ianto first met you."

Jack looked sheepishly at Ianto.

"I remember. You talked to me properly… and I just growled at you."

Ianto smiled at the memory.

"I never blamed you for that. You had no reason to believe that I was any different from any of the others."

"Who you are is still buried inside your mind," the Doctor went on. "Your memories of yourself, the people you know… the life you lived before you fell victim to Torchwood. If you're willing, I'll help you to try and remember. We'll help you remember who you are."

Jack swallowed hard.

"Who… Who am I?"

They all understood what he meant, even if he wasn't able to vocalise that meaning. He wanted to know if his true self was worth rediscovering. Rose answered his unspoken fears with a vehemence that startled both Jack and Ianto.

"You're a hero, Jack. You're a good, brave, kind man, and we love you."

Jack still looked uneasy, though.

"I'm… not a bad person?"

"You've made mistakes," the Doctor told him quietly. "Just like anyone… Just like me. But no. You're not a bad person, Jack. I guarantee that."

"Then why did you leave me behind?"

The Doctor blanched, and found himself looking anxiously at Rose. She shook her head, and he could have sworn that she was trying to hide a smirk.

"You're on your own, there. You told _me_ that he'd decided to stay behind to help rebuild the Earth."

The Doctor didn't try to argue. He knew damned well that he didn't have a leg to stand on.

"I left you behind because I was a coward, Jack. You'd changed, and I was scared to face you. It was a mistake to do that, and I am so sorry, but I swear to you that nothing that happened was your fault."

Jack nodded slowly.

"Okay. So, what are we doing now?"

"Right now," the Doctor answered, "I'm going to tell a story."

Jack's face promptly lit up.

"I like stories! What's it about?"

"You, Jack. Rose and I are going to tell you the stories of our adventures together. You can just sit and listen, if you like. If you remember something, though, then just jump right in and tell us, all right?"

"All right," Jack agreed, although he sounded marginally less enthusiastic.

"Ianto?" Rose asked at the sight of the odd look on his face. "You all right, there?"

"Fine," he murmured. "It's just, when you said we were going to start working on healing his mind, Doctor, I kind of expected some sort of… I don't know… telepathy?"

The Doctor looked indignant as he settled himself back into his chair.

"I will not go traipsing through his mind unless we've exhausted all other possibilities, and we do still have some options open to us. If this doesn't help, we'll try using a trigger. I have a specific one that should prove fairly effective. We'll use the non-invasive and less dangerous methods first, thankyou."

"And if they don't work?" Ianto wondered.

"Oi! A little positive thinking wouldn't go astray!" Rose chided. Ianto, however, was unapologetic.

"I'm sorry, but I have to look at this practically. If this doesn't work… if none of it works and the damage is permanent, then we have a big problem."

"If that turns out to be the case, then Jack will stay here on the TARDIS, with me," the Doctor promised. "I'll take care of him, Ianto, and I promise I'll do a better job than I did the last time."

"That sounds great, Doctor. But how long are you going to live for? Somehow, I don't think it'll be as long as Jack."

The Doctor glanced ruefully at Jack, who was watching them with wide-eyed uncertainty.

"We'll deal with that if it becomes an issue. Not now. Jack, are you ready to hear a story?"

With the discussion swinging back to familiar territory, the worry fled Jack's face and he nodded enthusiastically.

"Yes, please!"

The Doctor smiled gently.

"All right, then."

* * *

The Doctor was a talented storyteller. Ianto soon found himself enthralled as much as Jack, listening to the Doctor tell the story of his and Rose's first encounter with Jack. Vivid descriptions of Chula warships, gasmask people and nanogenes swept over them both.

From World War II, they were then transported to Cardiff, and the story of Margaret, the Slitheen in hiding who had intended to blow up the Earth, but saw the heart of the TARDIS and got a second chance at life. Ancient Tokyo followed, along with a string of adventures that generally risked life and limb.

Rose took special pleasure in describing Jack's grand distraction at the hospital in London, where they'd found the caveman. Ianto was amused, and poor Jack looked torn between embarrassment and wicked glee.

Ianto listened, enthralled, but also surreptitiously glanced at Jack every now and then to see his reactions. It was hard to tell him just by watching him. There were no outward signs of remembrance on his face, and he never uttered a sound whilst the Doctor and Rose talked.

When the Doctor began to tell the story of the battle on the game station, though, Jack finally began to show a visible reaction. Feeling suddenly uneasy, Ianto began to watch Jack more than he was listening to the Doctor's tale. He could see the beginnings of distress as the Time Lord recounted the trauma of believing Rose to be dead. He saw the slow-building tension as the courageous actions of Jack were recounted in solemn tones.

"I was nearly done getting the Delta Wave ready," the Doctor said quietly. "It was almost finished when I heard you, Jack. 'Last man standing', you shouted. You were the only one left out of every other human on that wretched satellite. The only person standing between me and the Daleks. You didn't run, and you didn't beg. You stood your ground against them, even though you knew it would mean your death. I loved you so much right at that moment, Jack. You gave your life for me on pure faith that I was doing the right thing, and I never had the time to so much as shed a tear for you. After that, everything happened so fast…"

"Doctor, stop," Ianto said suddenly. Silence fell as the three of them looked properly at Jack.

"What is it?" Rose asked finally. "Jack? Do you remember something?"

"S… Scared," Jack whispered tremulously. "They were going to k… kill me. Couldn't run, or hide… Just dead. I was dead, and I was never going to find…"

Jack trailed off, his breath hitching painfully in his chest. Ianto laid a hand gently on his shoulder.

"Never going to find what, cariad?"

"Can't… can't remember," Jack whimpered in distress.

Making a snap decision, the Doctor reached into his pocket, and his fingers closed around the supple leather of Jack's vortex manipulator. It seemed that Jack's memories were there, right at the brink of his conscious mind. It could be that he only needed a single trigger to bring it all back.

"Jack," he said before he had a chance to rethink his plan of action. "Hold out your hands. I have something here that belongs to you."

Jack held out his hands, and the Doctor lay the futuristic device gently in his palms, and closed his fingers around it. He froze. Jack stared down at the device in his hands in complete, deathly silence that seemed to stretch out for an age. Then, he began to scream.

* * *

The Doctor honestly hadn't know what to expect when he handed the wrist strap to Jack. For all he knew, nothing at all could have happened. But he really, truly had not been prepared for the hysteria that Jack quickly descended into. All hell literally broke loose as he, Rose and Ianto scrambled to help Jack, who had collapsed to the floor and curled up into a tight foetal position, whilst still screaming his lungs out.

"Take it off him!" Rose screamed, and the Doctor immediately tried to do so. Jack's hands clutched it in a death grip, though, and the Doctor couldn't pull it free.

"He's going into shock!" Ianto burst out. "You have to do something!"

"Ianto, go to the med room," the Time Lord ordered. "Bring back one of those sedatives that I showed you earlier."

"You're not bloody sedating him!" Ianto roared, incensed. The Doctor felt like screaming himself.

"It's not a standard sedative. It'll help him. Please, just go and get it, before he _does_ go into shock, and shut down on us!"

Ianto glared at him threateningly before running from the room.

"Doctor?" Rose asked in confusion. He didn't answer her, but instead reached up to press his palms to Jack's temples.

"Look at me, Captain. That's it, look at me. Focus on me."

By the time Ianto returned less than a couple of minutes later, Jack's hysterical, terrified screams had been replaced by tremulous whimpers. He remained curled up on the floor with his hands locked around the vortex manipulator, but his eyes were no longer as wild, and he seemed to be focused on the Doctor, at least to a degree.

"What do I do with this?" Ianto asked, half hoping to be told that it was no longer needed.

"Inject it into his neck, at the base of his skull," the Doctor instructed. "Now, quickly."

Ianto frowned darkly, but nevertheless did as he was told. The effect was instantaneous, and Jack's body relaxed as he slipped into unconsciousness.

"All right," Ianto demanded as the Doctor carefully removed the offending item from Jack's grasp. "What the hell was all that about?"

The Doctor held up the wrist strap for Ianto to see.

"This is Jack's vortex manipulator. It's the device used by time agents to hop around via the vortex."

"Like the TARDIS?" Ianto asked in confusion, and the Doctor snorted derisively.

"_This_ is not space travel. It's like, I've got a sports car, and he's got a space hopper."

Rose smirked.

"Boys and their toys."

Ianto smiled faintly in appreciation of the light joke before turning serious again.

"You used it as a trigger for his memories, didn't you?"

The Doctor answered with a nod.

"Yes, I did, and it seems to have worked."

"Worked? Doctor, did you pay attention? He went into shock! How could you say it worked?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow at the young man.

"Were _you_ paying attention?"

Ianto stared at him for a long moment before speaking in a forcibly calm voice.

"Would you please explain to me just what is going on here? Because I seem to have missed the boat somewhere along the line."

"You're not the only one," Rose added. "Doctor, how could you possibly say this was successful?"

"Ah, well, whether it's successful is yet to be seen," the Doctor conceded.

"But you just said it worked!" Rose argued.

"I did, and it did. But whether the memories will hold is going to be entirely up to Jack. Look, Jack is approximately one hundred and seventy years old. That is far longer than any human was ever meant to live, and Jack is still only human. Now, the human brain can only cope with being filled with so much knowledge at a time. You know how you tend to find that you forget some things in favour of remembering others? Well, up until this point, Jack has only had a clear memory of the last six or seven months. Anything before that was hazy at best."

And suddenly, Ianto understood what the Doctor was trying to explain to them.

"He's just been bombarded with a hundred and seventy years worth of memories, hasn't he?"

"Bingo," the Doctor said humourlessly. "His body and mind both need a chance to catch up with the sudden influx. What the sedative did was to effectively put him into stasis while he sorts himself out."

"So, when he wakes up, he'll be… you know… better?" Rose asked hopefully, and both men could see she was hoping for a return of the man she remembered.

"If only it were that simple," Ianto said tiredly, speaking before the Doctor had a chance to. "Even if this gives him back his memories, he still has the trauma of a hundred years in captivity to deal with. You don't just bounce back from something like that, and now he's going to remember all of it. It could be enough to break him all over again."

"He's stronger than you're giving him credit for," the Doctor said quietly. "And, he has something now that he never had before. He has you, Ianto."

"He's right, you know," Rose agreed. "It's because of you that he's come this far."

Ianto couldn't bring himself to argue. Modesty aside, he knew the Doctor and Rose were right. Jack had worked hard to get to this point, and he'd done it all for his beloved Yan toe. To write him off now wasn't just wrong. It was unforgivable.

* * *

"How long is he likely to be out for?" Ianto asked as he and the Doctor settled Jack back into his bed. On impulse, Ianto tucked the toy dog carefully into the crook of Jack's arm.

"Hours. Days. Weeks, even," the Doctor answered vaguely. "It's impossible to tell."

"Weeks?" Ianto echoed in dismay. "It could really take that long?"

"It's possible. We're talking about a lot of memories here, and the human brain can only cope with so much."

"Yes, you pointed that out already, Doctor."

The Time Lord looked genuinely surprised, so much so that Ianto had a powerful urge to laugh.

"Did I? Must be getting old. Starting to repeat myself."

Ianto eyed the Doctor wonderingly.

"Just how old are you?"

"That's a bit personal."

"I'm sorry if I seem nosy," Ianto apologised. "I was just wondering. I didn't mean any harm or offense."

The Doctor stared at Jack intently for nearly a minute before raising his gaze to meet Ianto's once more.

"None taken, Mr Jones. If you must know, I'm nine hundred years old. Give or take a few years."

Ianto, to his credit, hardly blinked.

"But your body couldn't be that old. And you've had other faces… other bodies over the years."

"It's called regeneration," the Doctor explained. "When a Time Lord is dying, he or she can regenerate. It basically means growing a whole new body. This body is my tenth regeneration. I can do it twelve times before I die for good."

Ianto chewed lightly on his lower lip as he considered that.

"So, before Jack, you were the closest thing this universe had to immortality."

"I guess you could say that," the Doctor conceded. "But I did not leave Jack behind out of jealousy on my part."

"What did happen, Doctor? Help me to understand, so that I can help Jack when he wakes up."

At his question, the Doctor's face clouded over. For just an instant, Ianto thought the Time Lord was going to simply walk out, but he didn't.

"I suppose that if anyone has a right to know, it's Jack. All right, then. Rose happened. Even though I sent her home, she came back. She opened the heart of the TARDIS and absorbed the Time Vortex. She came back and destroyed the Daleks. She saved me, and she brought Jack back to life. She couldn't control it, though, and she brought him back forever. She did it because she loved him, Ianto. Not because she wanted to curse him. She didn't understand what she was doing… She didn't even remember it afterwards. It was my decision not to tell her the truth."

Ianto held up his hands as the Doctor's defence steadily became more and more vehement.

"I understand, really, and I'm not going to sit here and make condemnations. Not even over you. I do want to know, though, why did you leave him behind?"

"Because I was a coward," the Doctor answered bitterly. "I was also dying. I took the Vortex out of Rose to save her. She would have burned up, otherwise. Doing it destroyed my ninth regeneration, though. All I could think of was getting the TARDIS into the vortex, where I could regenerate safely. Yes, I knew Jack was alive again, and I knew what Rose had done to him but I couldn't face him. Not right then. Then I regenerated, and I got sick… nearly missed the Sycorax invasion because of that."

Ianto's eyes were dark with controlled anger.

"You should have gone back for him. You could have gone back at any point, because your timeline and his didn't cross again until now. It could have been months for you, but it would have been only moments for him. Why couldn't you do that?"

"I told you, I'm a coward," the Doctor growled. "The longer I waited, the easier it became to convince myself that it didn't matter, that he was better off on his own." He paused, waiting for the expected condemnation, but it never came. Ianto interpreted his expression correctly, and smiled crookedly.

"I'm not really in the position to be able to claim the moral high ground. I've done things wrong… run away from my responsibility. I can't judge you. I don't have the right."

The Doctor regarded him curiously.

"Care to explain that, Mr Jones? Because just a moment ago, I could have sworn you were doing just that."

Ianto shuddered just a little. He hadn't really intended on ever making this particular confession, but now he couldn't seem to stop himself.

"Lisa. She was my girlfriend when I first started taking care of Jack, and we ended up breaking up. She couldn't understand why I wanted to help him. During the... the battle, she was captured by the Cybermen. She and Jack together, actually. When Rose and I got to them, she was already half converted."

The Doctor shut his eyes, and was immediately assaulted by the image of a young woman, partially converted and very much dead.

"You killed her to end her suffering."

It wasn't a question, nor was it an accusation. It was simply a statement of fact. Ianto was in tears by then, crying openly as he made his own confession.

"She was in so much pain! I tried to free her, I really did. But she was trapped, and she was hurting. I didn't know what else to do! I should have waited for you, but I just couldn't think straight. She begged me to end it. I didn't want to, but I couldn't just leave her there, either."

The Doctor laid a hand gently on his shoulder.

"You made a hard decision, Ianto, and I can't dictate whether it was the right one or not. But I can tell you this. You didn't take the coward's way out. I saw her in that room, and I'm telling you that there was no way back for her by then. The cyber technology would have already infected her brain. She couldn't have been saved, and she definitely could not have been reverted back to human form."

Ianto rubbed self-consciously at his eyes.

"They'd started the process on Jack, too, when the power went down. What would have happened to him if they'd gotten as far with him as they had with Lisa?"

The look in the Doctor's eyes was truly haunted, and Ianto couldn't help but wonder just how many times he had contemplated that very possibility.

"I don't know, Ianto. I really don't know."

* * *

_  
to be continued...._


	35. Trouble in Paradise

It seemed to Ianto that Jack's power of recuperation extended to more than just his physical body, because less than twenty-four hours after slipping into the restorative coma, Jack was awake. Ianto had only left his side three times during that period; twice to use the bathroom, and once for a brief nap. The latter had been at Rose's insistence, and although he had gotten a little sleep, it had been anything but restful. His worry for Jack overrode everything, even concern for his own wellbeing.

When Jack's eyes fluttered open, Ianto hardly dared to hope. The Doctor had warned him that there might be moments when Jack appeared to awaken, only to slip under again. When the immortal man turned his head and his gaze focused on Ianto, though, the Welshman knew he was truly awake.

"Cariad?" he asked softly. Tears spilled from Jack's eyes.

"I had a bad dream, Yan."

Ianto allowed his fingers to stroke Jack's forehead soothingly.

"What did you dream, love? Tell me."

Jack's breath caught in his throat again before he could answer, and as Ianto watched, the panic grew in his eyes. The explosion that Ianto was expecting, though, never came. Instead, Jack rolled over onto his side, curling again into himself and uttering soft, miserable whimper.

"Yan?"

"I'm here, Jack. I'm not going anywhere."

"I... I remember..."

Ianto carded his fingers gently through Jack's hair.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Jack shook his head violently.

"No. Don't wanna. If I tell you, then you'll see..."

Ianto frowned in confusion.

"What will I see, love?"

"That I'm bad," Jack burst out, erupting into a flood of tears. "I'm bad, and you won't want to stay with me anymore!"

Cursing softly, Ianto seated himself carefully on the edge of the bed, and drew his struggling charge into his arms.

"I don't believe that, Jack. Maybe you've done bad things, but that doesn't make you a bad person. It just means that you've made mistakes. And you know something? So have I. You don't think I'm a bad person, do you?"

Slowly, Jack's struggles tapered off, and he looked up at Ianto in genuine shock.

"You're not bad. You take care of me. I love you."

The simple faith with which Jack spoke made Ianto want to weep. He compensated for the sudden surge of emotion by leaning down and kissing Jack tenderly on the temple, and then on the cheek.

"And I love you, too. Whatever is in your past is not going to change that. Now, you don't have to tell me anything until you're ready to, but don't think for a second that I'm going to leave you, or that I could ever hate you. It's not going to happen."

Jack fell quiet in his arms, and Ianto took advantage of the quiet moment to consider the situation.

He had his memories back. Maybe not absolutely every single one, mind, but generally speaking, he obviously remembered who he was. What didn't seem to have altered, though, was Jack's level of maturity. He still appeared to be that insecure little boy that needed constant love and reassurance.

Ianto wasn't especially disappointed. After all, he'd been the one to point out that remembering his life was not going to necessarily be like hitting a reset button. Ianto sincerely believed that Jack had never been going to snap back to being that flirty rogue that the Doctor and Rose remembered so fondly.

He did wonder, though, just how long it was going to take to bring Jack up to a level of maturity where he could reasonably function outside the safety of the TARDIS.

"You love me... no matter what?"

Ianto regarded him quizzically.

"Yes, Jack. I promised you, didn't I?"

Jack's breath hitched, and his hold on Ianto tightened marginally.

"There was a mean lady. She said you didn't really love me. She said you loved her and you were going to leave me and be with her. She called me a freak."

Ianto's heart started to pound, realising quickly just who Jack was talking about.

"What was her name, Jack? Do you know?"

"She said she was Lisa, and that you were going to marry her. I got scared, Yan. I didn't want her to take you away."

"I was never going to abandon you, cariad. She knew that. She was just trying to frighten you, and it worked, didn't it?"

Jack nodded, sniffling miserably.

"Yes. Yan toe...?"

"What is it, love?"

"I... I did something really, really bad. I've been scared to tell you because I thought you'd hate me."

Ianto felt a chill rush through him. He wasn't sure that he liked where this was going, not in the slightest.

"What did you do, Jack? Tell me."

"I showed the metal men where Lisa was."

The bottom quite literally dropped out of Ianto's stomach and, before he could think twice, he'd pushed Jack away from him and was on his feet.

"You... You... oh god, no..."

Jack stared up at him with wide, frightened eyes.

"Yan toe? I'm sorry..."

"No," Ianto cut him off hoarsely. "No, sorry isn't good enough this time. You... Oh god, I can't think straight! All this time, I thought she'd given you up to the Cybermen to try and save herself, but it was the other way around, wasn't it? I mean, I was there, I saw you pointing, but it never even occurred to me! How could you, Jack?"

Consumed as he was by horror, Ianto never noticed that Jack was not crying openly. He didn't notice the look on Jack's face that spoke of guilt, grief and, most of all, acceptance. He never said a word, accepting Ianto's tirade in silence.

Too caught up in his own emotions to notice Jack's unusually subdued reaction, Ianto turned and headed for the door.

"Are you going to leave now, like Gage?" Jack asked softly. Ianto paused in the doorway.

"No, Jack. I'm not going to leave like Gage, but I can't be in here with you right now. I need to have some time alone, so I can think."

Then he was gone, leaving Jack alone.

For the longest while, Jack just sat on his bed, his blanket and dog clutched in his hands. The only outward sign of emotion was an occasional tear that worked its way out of his eye, and left a silvery streak down his cheek.

He didn't blame Ianto for his reaction, even though he had hoped for a bit more understanding. Hoped, but not expected. After all, it was not the first time in his life that he'd been rejected because of a wrong he'd committed that resulted in getting someone else killed.

Jamie, the gas mask child... Even though the Doctor had saved him, Jack still felt the painful sting of guilt.

His friend, Tai, who he'd convinced to go to war, and who had died a horrendous death at the hands of sadistic monsters... Tai's parents had forgiven him, but his two older brothers had not, and Jack had ended up hospitalised after they'd extracted what they considered suitable vengeance. Jack had never given up their identities to the authorities. After all, what they'd done to him was nothing compared to what Tai had suffered through.

And then there was Gray.

A moment of carelessness, a failure to so much as glance back over his shoulder, and his little brother was gone. Not dead. That would at least have been something. No, Gray was gone, taken by the monsters who had slaughtered his father. He'd been left alone with a mother who, forever more had been unable to look at him without accusing him of something that, logically, Jack knew was not really his fault.

He'd never been one for thinking logically.

Now, here he was once again, alone and facing rejection. Except, this time it was fully his fault, and he knew he couldn't blame Ianto for walking away from him.

Jack shut his eyes, and felt the burn of unshed tears behind his eyelids. He remembered, all right, and it was all the worst memories that were surging to the surface.

"I'm bad," Jack said in a soft miserable voice. "And Yan hates me."

Shaking a little, Jack set his dog down on the bed, but held tightly onto his blanket. He stood and thought for a moment before changing his mind and putting the dog on Ianto's bed instead.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. He then walked out of the room without looking back.

* * *

_to be continued..._


	36. Coming to Terms

If the Doctor was surprised to see Jack in the control room of the TARDIS, he didn't let it show. He watched the immortal man wander in, clutching his blanket tightly. The Doctor didn't know what was wrong – the TARDIS had stopped him from listening in – but he knew it was something profound.

"I have to go," Jack said abruptly. The Doctor raised an eyebrow.

"Go where, Jack? We're in the vortex."

Jack looked directly at him, then, and the Doctor could see the renewed clarity in the other man's eyes.

"You can land her. Please, Doctor. I have to go."

"You explain why you suddenly need to go, and I'll consider it."

Abruptly, Jack's face crumpled, and the stoicism that had lent itself to give him an air of renewed maturity vanished.

"I'm bad, and Yan doesn't want me anymore."

He began to cry, unable to contain his grief any longer. The Doctor strode over and embraced his distraught companion, hugging him close.

"All right. I'm it's not as bad as you think."

"It is," Jack choked out. "I told the metal men where Lisa was. I did a bad thing and Yan hates me now. He... He said he couldn't be in the same room as me. I tried to say sorry, but he said that wasn't good enough!"

The Doctor cradled Jack's head against his shoulder. Over one hundred years of adult memories, and they were all warring against the personality of a child.

"He doesn't hate you, Jack. He may be angry and upset with you just now, but he doesn't hate you. Yes, you did do a bad thing..."

Jack uttered a muffled sob and tried to pull away, but the Doctor refused to let him go.

"Now, stop it, Jack. Just listen. It was a bad thing to do, but not unforgiveable. Ianto will forgive you, but you need to be patient and give him time. Did you hear me, Jack? Ianto doesn't hate you, and he will forgive you."

"Mum didn't."

The Doctor's breath caught in his throat.

"What do you mean?"

"When I lost my little brother Gray to the monsters, Mum never forgave me."

"Oh, Jack," the Doctor whispered as Jack began to sob afresh. "How old were you when that happened?"

"Th... Thirteen..."

"You got your memories back well and truly, didn't you? The bad as well as the good."

"It hurts," Jack sobbed. "I want it to stop hurting."

"I know, but believe me when I tell you that running away won't help. You need to stand up and take responsibility, just like you did during World War II, when Rose and I first met you. You remember that now, don't you?"

"Yes," Jack whispered. "I... I remember you were so angry at me."

"And I forgave you. Do you remember that as well?"

Jack stared at the Doctor, hardly daring to hope.

"Will he really forgive me?"

"Yes, I believe he will. Just give him a chance. Now, do you still want to leave?"

"No," Jack admitted. "I just... I thought Yan was going to..."

The Doctor nodded in understanding.

"You thought Ianto would leave, so you decided to get in first. You thought it would hurt less if you left him rather than him leaving you."

"Yeah," Jack agreed sheepishly. "He said he wouldn't have, but I was scared he might anyway."

"Jack. Has Ianto broken a promise to you yet?"

"No."

It was said without hesitation, and with absolute certainty. The Doctor smiled faintly.

"There you are, then. Now, I think perhaps you and I could do with a bit of fresh air."

"Are we going to the garden?" Jack asked. A grin lit up the Doctor's face.

"No, I think I'll do as you suggested, and land the old girl. Got the perfect place in mind. Lovely little planet, totally uninhibited and won't be discovered until the sixty-third century. It has a gorgeous beach... Jack? What's wrong?"

Jack trembling, and there was a haunted look in his eyes that made the Doctor's hearts ache.

"Can we go somewhere without a beach? Please?"

The Doctor reached up and brushed his fingertips over Jack's temple. He was immediately bombarded by images to give anymore nightmares.

"When your brother was lost?" he inquired gently, and Jack nodded tearfully. The Doctor sighed. "I'm so sorry. All right, we'll give the beaches a miss for now. I'll find somewhere else. Maybe somewhere with a nice market, so Rose can do some shopping."

Jack moved back to sit on the pilot's seat, and watch as the Doctor worked the complex controls, all the while muttering manically to himself. He remembered this. Granted, the Doctor had a different face, but the feeling of watching the Time Lord in action was the same. It was comforting, somehow.

"Jack, would you like to help me?"

Jack looked startled, and just a little bit hopeful.

"Can I?"

"Of course. Don't you remember, you always used to."

Slowly, Jack joined him at the controls, and the Doctor indicated a particular panel.

"That one, right there. I showed you how to use it. Do you remember, or would you like me to go over it with you again?"

"No, it's okay. I remember."

He did, and the Doctor watched him with a fond smile as Jack began to manipulate the controls in front of him. After a long moment, Jack became aware that he was being watched, and looked up nervously.

"Am I doing it wrong?"

The Doctor grinned broadly, and the enthusiasm he projected coaxed a tiny smile from Jack.

"You're doing it perfectly, Jack. Just perfect."

* * *

They landed the TARDIS with the lightest of bumps, but it was still enough to bring Ianto and Rose to the control room. As they walked in, the young Welshman locked gazes briefly with Jack before pointedly looking away.

Acutely aware of Jack's disappointed expression, the Doctor spoke enthusiastically.

"Arthemix Five. Lovely little planet. Miles of scenic gardens, plus one of the biggest markets in the galaxy. Best of all, it's perfectly safe. We've landed some time during the forty-fourth century, and war won't find this place until the fifty-eighth."

Rose, Ianto noted, looked sceptical to say the least.

"Are you sure about this? It's just, you were the one who said we were better off in the vortex."

"Trust me," he assured her. "Now, funds for the day..." He pulled three slim, silver discs from his pocket and buzzed his sonic screwdriver over them before handing one to Rose, one to Jack and the third to Ianto. "There, that should give you all plenty of credits for spending. Now, shall we?"

The Doctor took Rose's hand and led her out through the doors, deliberately leaving Jack and Ianto to follow at their leisure.

Initially, neither man spoke. Then, with all the certainty of a frightened child, Jack held out a trembling hand to Ianto.

"Yan? Please?"

Ianto hesitated. He and Rose had been talking prior to the TARDIS landing, and he had calmed down significantly, but he was still upset and angry. All the platitudes in the world weren't going to change the fact that Jack had caused Lisa's death. He might have been the one to take her life, but Jack's actions were what had placed her in that situation to begin with.

Even so, he knew how vital it was that Jack knew he wasn't going to be rejected, or abandoned. With that solely in mind, he reached out and took Jack's outstretched hand in his own. It was a testament to Jack's improved mentality that he didn't take the gesture as evidence that all was well between them. Instead, he offered Ianto a weak smile.

"Thankyou," he whispered. Ianto regarded him solemnly.

"I'm still upset with you, Jack, but I'm not going to leave you, either. But you have to give me time."

"That's what the Doctor said," Jack admitted. Ianto regarded him thoughtfully. He could see the innocent child-like side of Jack's personality, but now there was another side as well. In Jack's eyes, Ianto realised he was starting to see the man who had been hidden away for so long.

"C'mon," Ianto told him quietly, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze. "Let's go and see what's out there."

* * *

The Doctor seemed to have nailed the landing. The TARDIS had set down in the middle of a lush and peaceful garden that was awash with brilliant colour, the likes of which Ianto had never seen before. At a glance, he didn't recognise any of the plants or flowers, but that went almost completely over his head as a tall, elegant creature with four arms and multiple tentacles walked by.

"My god... We're really on another planet..."

He felt a slight tug on his hand, and looked around at Jack. The older man looked anxious, and just a little bit frightened. Ianto wondered whether that was a result of their recent fracture, or the fact that the Doctor and Rose were out of sight.

"What is it?" he asked, trying and not quite succeeding to keep his tone neutral. Jack winced ever so slightly, but Ianto couldn't bring himself to offer reassurance. Not yet.

"Market," Jack offered, his expression crestfallen. Ianto looked, and sure enough, in the distance, he could see multitudes of colourful stalls as far as the eye could see.

"Do you want to go and have a look?" Ianto asked, and Jack nodded. The motion was subdued, but Ianto could see the eagerness in his eyes.

"All right, let's go. But you stay close to me, do you hear? No wandering off, not for any reason."

It seemed a moot point from both their perspectives. Jack had his hand in a death grip, and didn't seem to be willing to let go any time soon.

After making a mental note of where the TARDIS was, they headed off towards the market.

* * *

Ianto's head was spinning. They'd wandered around for a little over an hour, and barely covered a fraction of the market. It was, Ianto mused, not unlike visiting Costco in London, only the wares on offer were so much more exotic and interesting.

He saw some familiar items, having handled some during his stint in Archives. Most, he was amused to discover, Torchwood had gotten drastically wrong in their categorisation. One in particular that had been classed as a lethal weapon and sent to Secure Archives was, according to a very matter of fact vendor, a popular thirty-seventh century sex stimulant. When the vendor had offered them a free, single-use sample, Ianto had decided it was time to move on. Jack hadn't protested, but Ianto could have sworn he was disappointed.

Now, they sat back in the gardens, with a selection of food that, to Ianto, had at least looked palatable. Despite Jack's insistence that the green and purple spotted mashed potato wannabe was 'good, really good' he just was not feeling adventurous enough to try it. And so Jack had the bizarre concoction to himself, while Ianto made his way almost daintily through what was effectively a four-tiered sandwich. He didn't know what the fillings were, and had decided he was probably better off not knowing.

Jack was conspicuously quiet. Despite Ianto's best efforts to ignore him, he couldn't help but be aware of his presence. Ianto shut his eyes and let his head roll back a little, under the pretence of enjoying the warmth of Arthemix Five's two pale suns that shone down on them. Part of him wanted nothing more than to turn around and wrap Jack up in a ferocious hug, and tell him that he forgave him and every was all right. It just wasn't that easy to do that time. He knew Jack was hurting, but then so was he.

He had been placed in the untenable position of having to take a life, and right at that moment he simply couldn't see past the bottom line that Jack's actions had ultimately placed him in that position, and in the end, that was what he was really having trouble forgiving.

The tension was now palpable, and a surreptitious glance told Ianto that despite his initial enthusiasm, Jack was not actually eating much of his lunch. He felt a further touch of irritation at the perceived wastage.

"Jack, if you don't intend on eating that, then you shouldn't have bought it."

He spoke perhaps a little more harshly than he'd intended, and Jack's face fell even further. He turned away from Ianto, and began to shovel the food into his mouth so quickly that Ianto was genuinely afraid that he was going to choke himself.

"Jack, stop! You'll make yourself ill! Look, I'm sorry for snapping. Please, just stop, before you choke!"

Slowly, Jack set the plate down on the grass, and his hands came to rest in his lap. He made no effort to turn back to Ianto, though, and the Welshman was sure he could see the tell-tale tremors rippling through his body as he struggled not to cry.

Aware that the onus was now on him to do something about the fracture in their relationship, Ianto spoke in a low and careful tone.

"Jack, do you understand why I'm upset with you right now?"

Jack's head nodded quickly.

"I killed Lisa."

"Not directly, but what you did led to her death. Worse than that... Jack, you put me in a position where I had to take a life. Lisa was still alive when we found her. She was in agony, and there was no way to save her. She begged me to kill her, and I did. If you hadn't done what you, I wouldn't have had to do that. I wouldn't have her blood on my hands. _That_ is why I'm so upset."

Jack's breath came in a short gasp.

"I made you...?"

Ianto heard the dawning horror in Jack's voice as he began to comprehend Jack's words. A choked sob followed.

"I... I am bad..."

Ianto wanted to weep, partly out of frustration and partly in grief that Jack really seemed to believe that he was a bad person.

"No, you are not! You're not a bad person. You did something that was bad, but that does not make you a bad person."

"But you don't like me anymore," Jack said in a small voice.

"Oh, Jack," Ianto murmured. He shifted around and slipped his arms around Jack's shoulders. "I do. I love you. I wasn't lying when I told you that, and it's not something you can just turn on and off, no matter how mad you are. I may be upset and angry, but that doesn't mean I don't love you anymore."

Confusion filled Jack's face, and he looked at him with swollen, tear-stained eyes.

"How can you love someone when you're angry at them?"

"Quite easily, love. And I promise you that I still love you very much."

Tears spilled freely down Jack's cheeks as Ianto embraced him.

"I'm sorry, Yan. I'm sorry about Lisa. I just wanted her to stop saying those things. She was like those nasty people that hurt you, and I just wanted her to stop!"

"You mean like Burke and Brandon?"

"She called me a freak like they did," Jack told him in a muffled voice. "She said you didn't really love me, and that she was going to make you forget all about me. She couldn't do that, could she?"

Ianto felt an unpleasant chill race down his spine. Lisa had worked in Research, and had been helping to develop new and more effective versions of the drug Retcon. It was entirely possible that she might have been thinking of that when she said that to Jack.

"No," he murmured finally, as much for his own peace of mind as it was for Jack's. "No, love. Nothing could ever do that."

Gradually, Jack pulled back out of Ianto's embrace.

"Are you still angry at me?"

Ianto considered that for a long moment before shaking his head and pressing a chaste kiss to Jack's lips. He could taste the other man's tears, and it just about broke his heart.

"No, cariad. I want you to promise me, though. The next time someone... _anyone_ tries to tell you that I don't love you, don't believe them. I do love you, and nothing you do... nothing you've ever done will change that."

The hope in Jack's eyes was almost painful to look at, and Ianto couldn't help but wonder when else in Jack's life he might have been betrayed and abandoned by someone he had believed to love him.

"Promise?" Jack asked, and Ianto sealed his promise with another lingering kiss.

"I promise I'll always love you, fy cariad. Now, how about we finish our lunch, and then go and have a look at some more of the market?"

Jack's face lit up again, finally, and he once more began to eat – albeit, at a more sedate pace. Ianto watched him in relief for a moment before finishing his own lunch.

* * *

_ to be continued..._


	37. Marketplace Mayhem

"Do you remember?" Ianto asked a little later on as they wandered leisurely through the market.

"Remember what?" Jack asked distractedly. After finally clearing the air between them, Jack had quickly returned to the excitable and rather easily distracted little boy personality that he was so familiar with. Whilst it was a relief to Ianto to see him cheerful again, at the same time he longed for Jack to show more than just an occasional hint of adult maturity.

"Your life, Jack. Do you remember your life before Torchwood... before the Doctor? Your family, for instance. Do you remember your parents? Brothers? Sisters...?"

Jack stilled so suddenly that Ianto knew without even having to look at his face that he'd touched on a sensitive topic. The immortal stood at a stall for a long while, making a show of intently examining some ornate jewellery. Ianto let him, guessing that he was trying to compose himself. Another glimpse of the man hidden beneath the many layers of trauma, he mused sadly.

"I had a brother," Jack answered so suddenly that Ianto very nearly missed it. "No sisters. Just me, my mum and dad and Gray. We lived near the beach... a human colony in the fifty-first century. It was invaded. Dad died... Gray was taken. I... I never found him. Mum never forgave me."

Ianto was horrified, and at the same time so many of Jack's insecurities suddenly made so much more sense to him. Anxious to offer reassurance, Ianto slipped his hand into Jack's and squeezed it lightly.

"I'm sorry, Jack. C'mon, there was a stall back here somewhere that had a gorgeous necklace that would look fantastic on you."

A shy, delighted smile graced Jack's face.

"A present?"

"Yes, a present," Ianto confirmed, and took great pleasure in watching the grief wash away from his companion's face. Right at that moment, Ianto was grateful to have the exuberant little boy in place of a sad, grief-stricken adult. "You act like you've never had a present before!"

Jack grinned boyishly, a look that charmed Ianto thoroughly.

"I like presents. I like the presents you gave me. New clothes, and my blanket. And the person who gave me my dog... And Gage gave me the book with stories and pictures. I like my presents. No one ever gave me a present before."

Ianto's eyebrows shot up.

"What about for your birthday?"

Jack frowned, visibly confused.

"What's a birthday?"

"What's a...? How can you not know what a birthday is?"

Jack shrugged, watching and still waiting for a reply. Conceding, Ianto explained.

"Everyone has a birthday, Jack. Oneday, every year, you get to celebrate the day you were born. For example, I was born on the nineteenth of August, so every year, my birthday is the nineteenth of August."

"Oh..." Jack murmured, in a tone that had Ianto suspecting that he stil didn't really understand. "When's my birthday, Yan?"

Ianto faltered.

"Well... I don't know. We'll have to ask the Doctor, and see if he can work that out."

"Okay," Jack agreed placidly. "Can we go get my present now?"

Chuckling, Ianto squeezed Jack's hand again, and led in the direction of the stall he'd seen earlier.

* * *

Ianto wasn't entirely certain what happened next. He would later tell the Doctor that it happened so fast that he had no clear recollection of how they'd allowed themselves to end up in such a sticky situation. They were just passing a brightly coloured tent when a strong pair of hands grabbed Ianto and all-but lifted him off his feet, dragging him inside the tent before he had a chance to so much as utter a squeak of protest.

He was thrown roughly to the ground, his hands bound tightly behind his back and a gag shoved into his mouth. A pained grunt beside him told him that Jack had suffered the same indignity. Ianto struggled with his bonds, only to suffer a cuff over the head that had him seeing stars.

"Knock it off, boy. We don't want to hurt you if we can avoid it."

Someone else uttered a short, harsh bark of laughter.

"Yeah, the slavers don't pay so well when they're bruised."

Ianto went cold with fear. The mere idea that they had survived Torchwood and Canary Wharf only to end up being abducted on a strange planet and sold as slaves was more than he could bear. He was helpless, though, and so was Jack. There was nothing either one of them could do that wouldn't result in bloodshed – namely, their own.

"Get them ready for transmatting," the first of their abductors ordered. "The mistress will be along shortly to inspect them."

One of the other men – and they _were_ human men, Ianto realised with a sickening feeling – snorted loudly.

"What's to inspect? They're perfect." He stopped in front of where Jack lay, and leered obscenely at him. "Especially this one. The kid we can sell on the regular market, but this one? He'll go for a high price on the pleasure market."

Ianto wanted to kill them as he glimpsed the terror in Jack's eyes. Never mind his earlier conversation with Jack, and his natural revulsion to killing. Right at that moment, Ianto wanted to kill every single one of them for putting that look of terror back in Jack's eyes.

He grunted in protest as his shirt was cut expertly away from his body, followed by his jeans, leaving him wearing nothing but his boxer shorts. He was then hauled to his feet, and held there at gunpoint beside a now similarly-attired Jack.

The young Welshman dared not move for fear of provoking their attackers. If they were going to get out of this situation, then it would need someone – namely, himself – to keep a clear head.

The heavy folds of the tent were pushed aside, and a woman of average height and equally average looks strode in. She was dressed in a style of military garb, her hair was jet black and cropped short in a no-nonsense style, and her black eyes took in the scene before her with vivid amusement that quickly morphed into astonishment when she laid eyes on Jack. Ianto felt another chill surge through him as she approached the immortal man with a disturbingly hungry look in her eyes.

"I'll be damned. Well, actually, I probably already am, but you know. Semantics."

With a predatory grin, she reached out to stroke Jack's cheek in a grossly intimate gesture. Jack tried to pull away with a muffled whimper, but the guns at his back held him in place.

"Agent Jaksyn Cale," she stated with a smirk. She glanced bemusedly at Ianto, acknowledging his presence for the first time. "Or at least, that's the name he was using when I knew him." She returned her attention to Jack, once more forgetting about Ianto. "The prodigal son has finally grown a set and decided to show his face again." Her fingers played over the gag. "I'll take this out, but if you yell, I'll knock all of your teeth out of your pretty little mouth. Understand?"

Jack nodded, his eyes wide with fear. She removed the gag, still smirking.

"Who are you?" Jack asked hoarsely. She pulled a face at him, and sidled up close, causing Jack to cringe.

"Aw, you don't remember me, Jakky? You don't remember your little Maia?"

Jack shifted, trying to dislodge her from where she was pressed up against his chest.

"No. I don't remember you. Do I know you?"

As though she'd suddenly realised he was joking, the woman who had introduced herself as Maia drew back and positively glared at him.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You really don't know who I am?"

"That's a bad word," Jack told her, and his words were immediately met with raucous laughter.

"Oh, that's priceless, it really is," Maia laughed. "Seriously, though, time to quit fucking around, Cale. Why have you suddenly turned up now, after all this time?"

Jack looked uneasily at Ianto before speaking in a shaky whisper.

"I'm sorry. I don't remember you."

Ianto heard the telltale tremor in Jack's voice, and knew that he was on the verge of tears. For once, he felt like joining him. The woman stared at Jack for a long minute before roughly yanking the gag from Ianto's mouth.

"Is he for real, boy?"

"Yes, he's for real," Ianto growled. "Whoever yu are, I can guarantee that this is not the man you used to know. Now please, just let us go and I swear that we'll forget we ever saw you."

Again, Maia laughed, and the cruelty in her voice send a fresh wave of shudders through Ianto.

"I don't think so. You're quite a pretty young thing, and you look relatively unspoilt. I think we could get quite a good price for you on the pleasure market. As for my former colleague here, let's just say that there are quite a few people back at the Time Agency Headquarters who will be very eager to see him again. And this time, they'll do much more than just take a couple of years from his memories."

"Yan?" Jack asked hoarsely, panic evident in his tone.

"Be quiet, Jack," Ianto said tensely, and the immortal obediently fell quiet. Their captor laughed nastily.

"Wonders will never cease! Jaksyn Cale has been domesticated! Who would have thought a runt like you could have achieved what that lunatic partner of his couldn't?"

Jack glanced anxiously from Ianto, back to Maia.

"What are you going to do?"

She stroked his cheek again, leaning in close enough to brush her body up against his.

"We're going to transmat your little friend here to a Slaver that I have a contract with, and sell him for a pretty price. Then, I'm going to take you home to Time Agency Headquarters and collect on the hefty reward that's on your head, and then watch while our superiors make the ultimate example of you. Of course, if you're especially good, I might be convinced to take the scenic route. It could add at least a week to our trip, if you get my meaning."

Ianto felt a rush of indignant rage as she suddenly pushed her knee between Jack's legs, deliberately rubbing against his crotch. To her irritation, and Ianto's private amusement, Jack was completely unaffected by the less than subtle provocation, and all-but ignored it.

"You want to sell my Yan."

"That's what I said."

She ran her hands over his bare chest, and down his stomach towards his groin. Jack huffed in annoyance, and tried to pull away from her.

"Stop that! I don't like it."

Maia pouted, but Ianto could see the dangerous aggravation and impatience building in her eyes.

"No? You used to. You used to like it very much."

"I don't want you to sell Yan."

"Don't you worry, sweet cheeks. It's nothing personal, just good business. And trust me, you'll have plenty to worry about yourself before too long without worrying your pretty head about him."

"But you're going to take him away from me."

Ianto could see renewed flickers of irritation in the woman's eyes.

"He's a runt. We'll get rid of him, and then you and I can get reacquainted and have a good time, just like we used to." She leaned further in, and kissed him harshly, biting his lip and clearly relishing his yelp of pain. "Condemned man's final request, if you like."

Throughout the entire exchange, Ianto's eyes were fixed on Jack. He watched the slow burn of rage in the other man's face as comprehension dawned over exactly what she was intending to do, and Ianto felt a equal thrill of fear and anticipation. The only other time that he could recall seeing that specific look on Jack's face had been two or three months ago, and it had ended with two men dead.

Maia stepped away from Jack and snapped her fingers, then motioned towards Ianto.

"Get him out of here, and transmat him directly to Dunn. Let the little troll do what he wants with him. I want to get reacquainted with my colleague."

Ianto grunted as he was shoved unceremoniously towards the back of the tent, and away from Jack. He was completely unsurprised by what happened next.

He heard Jack utter a snarl, and the next moment there was an ugly cracking sound as flesh and bone collided. There was a distinctly feminine groan, and Ianto twisted around to see Maia crumple to the floor in a daze. The half dozen guards all converged on Jack, but they were no match for the force of his rage.

With an ease that frightened Ianto a little, Jack snapped the ropes that bound his wrists, and proceeded to plough through the men like they were paper targets. With the same precision that Ianto had witnessed the night that Jack had killed Burke and Branton, the immortal took out one man after another until the only ones still standing were himself and Ianto. Then he crouched down in front of their would-be captor, and spoke in a threatening tone that gave away no hint of the childish side of his personality. This was the soldier, Ianto reflected, that Jack had clearly been trained to be, and that coupled with his ferocious loyalty and protectiveness made for a deadly enemy.

In that moment, Ianto was immensely grateful that he had Jack's unfailing love and loyalty.

Jack was speaking to Maia, and Ianto shook himself back to reality to hear his snarled warning.

"He's _my_ Yan, and no one gets to say he's leaving me except him! You're a bad person, and I don't want to know you!"

Ianto barely suppressed a snort of laughter at the childish words that were spoke with such adult menace. Then, Jack was suddenly back at his side, untying his wrists and finally freeing him.

"I'm sorry, Yan..."

Ianto whirled around and planted a short but fierce kiss on Jack's lips.

"Don't apologise, sweetheart. You did brilliantly. You saved us both, you did it without killing anyone, and I am so proud of you for that. Now, c'mon. Let's get out of here..."

Jack's pained yelp cut him off short, and Ianto looked down in horror to see that Maia had jabbed Jack in the hip with a small but deadly looking hypodermic.

"What did you just inject him with?"

She sneered up at him.

"Insurance policy, eye candy. All time agents carry one of these. It's a slow acting poison, and there's no cure. You have approximately twenty-four hours left with him, and then you get to bury him. Can't say they'll be a particularly pleasant twenty-four hours, either."

Enraged by her cruel pleasure, Ianto dropped down and planted his knee squarely in the centre of her chest, taking dark pleasure in her grunt of pain. He reached down and closed his hand around her throat, and squeezed.

"Tell me what you just gave him."

She uttered a harsh laugh.

"Your threats don't bother me, boy, but I'll tell you if only for my own amusement, because I know you're going to go mad looking for a cure that doesn't exist. It's called B31, and it's a synthetic compound created by the Time Agency for situations just like this. If you can't bring 'em in, then bring 'em down... What are you doing?"

While she was talking, Ianto snatched the hypodermic from her hand. It was empty, but for a few drops of the poisonous compound. Ianto fervently hoped that those few drops would be enough for the TARDIS to be able to analyse it, and hopefully create an antidote in time to save Jack from a dreadful death.

"Personal analysis, thanks very much."

"You little bas..."

Her protest was silenced very abruptly when Ianto punched her hard in the face, knocking her out cold.

"Not so little, thankyou very much," he retorted. Standing up, Ianto turned to look at Jack who was staring at him with a look that was sheer love and adoration. "Jack, are you feeling all right?"

"I feel okay," Jack confirmed tentatively. Ianto took hold of his hand. He was acutely conscious of their states of near nakedness, but there was nothing to be done about it. Their own clothes had been torn to shreds, and he didn't care to hang around to try and get the clothes off the brutes who had grabbed them. In addition to that, Ianto had no idea what would happen when the compound began to affect Jack, and he did not want them to still be out in the open when it did.

"All right. We need to run and get back to the TARDIS as fast as possible. Can you do that for me, Jack? Can you run fast?"

Jack nodded. He was as eager to please as ever, but at the same time Ianto could see the comprehension of their situation in his blue eyes. The immortal was as aware as him of their vulnerable position. Ianto smiled, and kissed Jack briefly in an effort to reassure them both.

"Let's run."

* * *

_ to be continued..._


	38. Restoration

"Well, you can't half tell that Jack's got his memory back," Rose said with a short laugh as she and the Doctor returned to the TARDIS a couple of hours later. The Doctor grunted.

"Not sure whether that's a good thing or a bad thing. I mean, really! running naked through the market? What were they thinking?"

Rose poked at him lightly, while grinning at the memory of hearing about the two human men who had created an uproar earlier by running through the market in their undershorts.

"They weren't naked. They were wearin' their shorts."

Her defence of them was answered with an annoyed, and slightly amused huff.

"As good as, wasn't it? And really, I thought at least Ianto would have known better. If I have to get the TARDIS to lock them in their room..."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he knew it was the wrong thing to say, and a look at the suddenly dark expression on Rose's face confirmed it.

"Don't you dare," she warned him softly. "I mean it, Doctor. You bloody well know how it could affect Jack if you do that to him."

He sighed and shook his head, contrite for once.

"Sorry. Stupid thing to say. Of course I wouldn't lock him in, Rose. I just wish I could trust him to show a little bit of simple modesty!"

Rose chuckled again as the tension evaporated as quickly as it had developed.

"Oh, go on. You can laugh, you know. It's funny!"

"It's typical Jack, is what it is. I'd hoped Ianto would have kept influencing him, but it seems like it's happening the other way around."

He tried to scowl, but Rose didn't miss the amused glint in his eyes. she grinned and gave him a playful shove.

"There, you see? It _is_ funny!"

"Oh, all right, I admit it is a little bit funny..." He trailed off as they entered the TARDIS, and all signs of amusement fell away in an instant. "Something's wrong."

Rose's giggles dissolved, and her own grin quickly faded.

"What's wrong? Doctor? What is it?"

He didn't answer her immediately, listening instead to the whisper of the TARDIS inside his mind. Then, he broke into a run, leaving Rose to chase after him.

"Where are we going?"

"Med room," he shouted back to her. Rose swore softly, and ran faster.

* * *

Ianto barely glanced up as the Doctor and Rose ran in. He sat beside Jack, who was curled up in the bed, drenched in sweat and trembling violently. His arms were folded around his stomach, and he was the colour of ash. Worst of all, though, were his eyes. Glazed with pain and completely unfocused, it was obvious that he was unaware of anything happening around him, including Ianto's efforts to soothe him.

"What happened?" the Doctor asked, striding over and pulling out his sonic screwdriver to scan Jack's inert form.

"We were ambushed in the market," Ianto explained softly as he lifted the cloth from Jack's forehead, and replaced it with a fresh, damp one. "I think we happened to be the latest in a long line of people who have been abducted and sold as slaves. They told us that was what they were going to do to us. They were going to sell me on the regular market, and Jack on the... the pleasure market."

The Doctor's face darkened with anger.

"Were they, indeed? We'll just see about that...."

Ianto went on in that same, subdued tone, as though he wasn't even aware that the Doctor had spoken.

"We were grabbed and dragged into this tent... It was brightly coloured, but I don't remember much else about it."

"Could you take me to it?" the Doctor asked, and Ianto nodded slowly.

"I think so. I'm not leaving Jack, though."

"Ianto, what happened to him?" Rose asked anxiously. Ianto shuddered a little.

"After we were grabbed, we were tied up and stripped down to our shorts. This woman came in. Called herself Maia. Bloody ugly bitch, if you ask me, but she seemed pretty full of herself. And she knew Jack. She was pretty excited to see him, actually. Said the Time Agency would be pleased to have him back."

"Oh god, no," Rose whispered in dismay.

"Go on," the Doctor encouraged him. "What happened next?"

"She tried to flirt with Jack... She kiss him, and... well, let's just say she got up very close and personal with him, and I don't think she was terribly impressed that he didn't react the way she expected him to. Then she made a fatal mistake. She told Jack she was going to sell me as a slave. Jack didn't take too kindly to the idea that I was going to be taken away from him."

The Doctor regarded Jack with grim understanding.

"Did he kill her?"

A sad smile crossed Ianto's lips.

"No, he didn't kill her. He didn't kill any of them. He took them down, but he didn't kill them. It was amazing to watch, Doctor. I know you don't condone violence, but there was almost something poetic about the way he moved."

"He's a trained soldier, Ianto," the Doctor pointed out quietly. "It might still be mostly buried, but the instincts are still there."

Ianto breathed in slowly.

"We were going to leave, but before we could, that bitch injected Jack with something she called B31. I brought the syringe back here with us, but the TARDIS is still trying to analyse it. She won't be able to produce a cure in time to help him. He's going to die, isn't he?"

"I'm sorry," the Doctor said softly. It was all he needed to say, and Ianto uttered a soft, miserable sob. Rose looked between them before speaking tentatively.

"I don't understand. He'll just come back to life, so what's the problem? I mean, it's not like it's going to be permanent..."

"You don't understand," Ianto said heatedly. "He's in agony, Rose. Maia said it's a slow-acting poison."

"She wasn't lying," the Doctor confirmed. "I've come across B31 before, but I didn't know until now that it was Time Agency manufactured. I think it's well past time that I paid them a visit, and dealt properly with them. They've had a free hand for long enough."

Rose shook her head, bringing the conversation back to the present.

"I'm sorry, I still don't get it. He'll be all right, even if he does die..."

"Would you wish a death like this on anyone?" Ianto asked, snapping with impatience and distress. "I know I wouldn't. And on top of that, coming back to life is not exactly pain-free, either. The worse the death, the harder the resurrection."

"Well... is there something we can do, then?" she wondered. "You know, to speed up the process?"

"We are not killing him," the Doctor growled before Ianto had a chance to respond. "We'll take care of him, and ease the pain and discomfort as much as we can, but we are not killing him."

Rose looked over at Ianto, looking very much like she wanted to argue and was hoping for support from the young man, but he was in agreement with the Doctor, and shook his head wearily.

"No, Rose. I can't do that. Not again. Not even knowing he'll come back."

Rose sighed in concession. She wasn't sure she understood their reasoning even then, but with two against one, she wasn't going to waste time arguing with them over it, either.

"All right, then. What do we need to do?"

* * *

Half an hour later, the Doctor had set up an IV unit that was providing Jack with a veritable kaleidoscope of drugs, all with the purpose of easing his pain and making him as comfortable as humanly possible. Ianto had lost track of the explanations after the first two and frankly, he didn't especially care. What he did care about was that it was working. Jack had emerged from the pain-induced stupor that he'd sunk into and, though he was still in obvious discomfort, he was at least aware of what was happening around him.

For the most part, he was generaally calm, although it quickly became clear that that was the case only whilst Ianto was in close proximity to him. The young Welshman tried to move away once, with the intention of going to get Jack's blanket and dog for him, but Jack became so distressed that Ianto didn't try again.

And so he sat by Jack's side in silence, watching him die a slow and agonising death. His thoughts took him back to the last time Jack had been poisoned. Then, one of his colleagues had taken the initiative and shot Jack dead to save him the prolonged agony.

Ianto shuddered. Even if the Doctor hadn't put the kibosh on killing Jack, he himself would not have been able to do it. As he had said to Rose, even knowing that Jack would come back to life, so soon after Lisa...? He just couldn't stomach the thought of taking another life, no matter how temporary the situation might theoretically be.

"Yan?"

Snapping back to reality, Ianto leaned in close.

"What is it, Jack?"

Stupid question, he thought angrily. Why didn't he just ask the standard idiot question 'how are you feeling?'.

"Hurts," Jack whispered miserably. Ianto wanted to weep.

"I know, love. I know it hurts, but there's nothing we can do."

Jack uttered a soft whimper.

"Am I going to die again?"

"I'm sorry," Ianto whispered. "I'm so sorry, Jack."

He expected tears from his charge, and was quietly surprised when it didn't happen. Instead, a soft, resigned sigh escaped Jack's lips.

"Not your fault. Yan... Please... Will you do something for me?"

Ianto felt nausea swell inside him. He knew what was coming. Jack was going to ask him to kill him, just like Lisa had done. He was going to ask for a mercy killing, to end his suffering. Ianto wanted to run and hide, and not come out again until it was all over, but he didn't. To run from Jack now would have been a terrible betrayal. And so, instead, he continued to hold Jack's hand and stroke his forehead, and he braced himself for the terrible request that he knew was coming.

"What do you want me to do, Jack?"

Jack drew in a harsh, ragged breath, and Ianto cringed as the sound rattled ominously inside his chest. The poison was systematically shutting his body down, the Doctor had explained. Gradually, everything would literally grind to a halt, all his vital organs would cease their functions, ensuring that Jack suffered a slow and agonising death.

Ianto couldn't blame him for wanting it to be over sooner, rather than later. He just hoped that afterwards, he would still be able to look Jack in the eye.

"Can you h... hold me? Please?"

Ianto blinked, confused.

"Sorry?"

"Would you hold me?" Jack asked again, shakily. "When I die... and when I come back... I'd like it if you held me. It's not so scary when you're holding me."

Tears blinded Ianto. It was the last thing he'd anticipated being asked, and it touched him to the heart.

"Yes, cariad, I'll hold you," Ianto promised. His voice broke a little with emotion as he held Jack's hand to his lips to press a tender kiss to the knuckles. "Of course I'll hold you."

"I know what you thought I was... was going to ask."

Yes, Ianto reflected ruefully. He probably did, at that.

"I'd do that for you if you asked," Ianto told him softly. "I wouldn't like it, but I'd do it."

Jack shook his head weakly.

"Wouldn't ask. Not after Lisa. I'm sorry, Yan..."

"I know you are, Jack, and I forgive you. Don't worry about it anymore, sweetheart."

Jack snuffled a little at the endearment.

"I miss Gage."

"I know," Ianto whispered. "So do I."

* * *

Over the following hours, Ianto witnessed as Jack suffered with what could only be described as quiet dignity and courage. He didn't complain, made no demands,, and when he wept for the pain he was in, he did it almost silently. Gone was the little boy persona. In its place, Ianto could see the mature adult – not the consummate flirt and irrepressible joker that the Doctor and Rose so vividly remembered, but the good, brave man that Jack had eventually become under their influence and care.

Ianto wasn't sure whether the maturity that Jack was displaying now made the situation easier or harder. More than once he found himself contemplating the morality of ending Jack's suffering, only to dismiss it each time. Jack had not asked for that sort of release, and Ianto would not disprespect the courage he was showing by taking the choice out of his hands.

* * *

Fifteen hours after being poisoned, Jack slipped into a coma whilst being cradled in Ianto's arms. An hour and half later, his body convulsed once as the poison finally reached his heart, and then it was over.

"Thank God for that," Rose whispered tearfully. "Doctor? How long before he comes back?"

"After a prolonged death like this?" the Doctor mused. "Could take him a couple of hours or more to come back. Ianto? Ianto, you can let him go."

"No," Ianto said quietly. "I promised him that I'd hold him when he died, and that I'd still be holding him when he comes back. I don't care how long it takes. I'm not letting go until he's come back. I won't take the chance that he might wake up without me." He looked up at the Doctor, pleading for understanding. "I promised him, Doctor. He could have asked me to kill him and end his suffering, but he didn't. He just asked to be held while he died, and when he woke up. I won't break that promise."

"All right, Ianto," the Doctor answered. "I understand. You're a good man, Ianto Jones."

Tears made tracks down Ianto's cheeks as the Doctor and Rose quietly left. He leaned down and pressed his lips briefly to Jack's before settling back to await Jack's resurrection.

* * *

"It's not fair," Rose said as she and the Doctor retreated to the kitchen. "Seriously, how much more can they take?"

"I know," the Doctor agreed. "It seems the vortex is the only place truly safe for them."

"Still," Rose conceded," at least we know they're not helpless."

"Maybe," the Doctor said grimly, "but I'm starting to wonder whether it would be better for Jack if he just stays here in the TARDIS, permanently."

Rose stared at him, her tear forgotten.

"You mean you're just gonna... keep him?"

The Doctor returned her stare, and for a brief moment the look in his eyes was completely alien to her.

"It's for his protection, Rose."

Rose answered that argument with a loud, obnoxious snort.

"Yeah, I'll bet that's what bloody Torchwood said when they first locked him up, too."

Anger flashed across the Time Lord's face.

"I am _not_ Torchwood."

"No, but you sure as hell sound like it! You can't just keep Jack shut away in here, Doctor. He's gotta learn to live his life again. He's gotta learn to take care of himself again, 'cause one day we'll all be gone – even you – and what'll he do then? Probably get himself into trouble all over again, 'cept there won't be anyone to save him. He's gotta learn to stand on his own, Doctor. That's what Ianto was trying to make him understand when he was still talkin' about leaving. You can't keep him here, not forever. If you try, then you really will be no better than Torchwood."

She was right, of course. He knew it, and didn't bother to even attempt arguing the point with her. The whole point of rescuing Jack from Torchwood, of petitioning the Queen to save him from UNIT dubious interest, was that he would have the freedom to make his own choices; to go wherever and do whatever.

He had no more right than anyone to remove that freedom.

"I just want him to be safe, Rose," he said finally. She slipped her arm through his, and hugged him fiercely.

"So do I, but we can't wrap him in cotton wool forever."

The Doctor sighed dramatically.

"Oh, all right. I'll let him choose. I suppose it's the least I can do."

A smirk formed on Rose's face.

"That's very big of you." She paused, and then exploded into a fit of the giggles. "Can you imagine the innuendoes old Jack would have come up with at that!"

The Doctor smiled wryly.

"Yes, and the TARDIS would have given him a nice, healthy shock for it."

Rose's giggles faded.

"I miss our Jack. D'you think he might ever be back to the way he was?"

"I don't know, Rose," the Doctor answered honestly. "I think that the man we knew is not too far beneath the surface now, but even so, one hundred years of constant abuse, torture and neglect is a lot for anyone to overcome and put behind them."

"Yeah, I s'pose. Thank God he's got Ianto, eh?"

The Doctor nodded distractedly, and Rose tugged lightly on his arm to get his attention.

"What are you thinking?"

"Something that I said to Ianto," the Doctor said, "about Jack being a trained soldier, and his instincts still being there after all these years."

"Mm, what about it?"

"Think about it, Rose. Jack brought down a time agent, and half a dozen soldiers, according to Ianto. Why then, back in 1899, was he unable to escape Torchwood?"

Rose shrugged.

"Dunno. Maybe they used some alien tech on him, or maybe they just kept him drugged."

The Doctor snorted derisively.

"Please! They would not have had either the drugs or the technology to have been able to hold the likes of Jack. And even if they did, they wouldn't have known how to use it. No, there must be another explanation."

It didn't take all that much effort to see where the Doctor was headed with his train of thought, and Rose smiled wryly.

"Let me guess. You wanna go back and see for yourself, right?"

"Yes, I do... but not without talking to Jack first. I don't want him finding out what I did later on, and feeling that I betrayed him all over again. I won't do that to him."

"Well, what will you do if he says no? That he doesn't want you doin' that?"

"Then I won't do it," the Doctor said simply. Rose looked sceptical, to say the least.

"Really? As simple as that?"

He answered with a nod and a sincere gaze.

"As simple as that. I will not deliberately do anything to cause Jack anymore grief. If he doesn't want me to know what happened, then I'll abide by that."

* * *

It was, in fact, two hours and twenty-seven minutes later when Jack finally came back to life. He returned to the land of the living with a strangled gasp as air filled his lungs, and the pain that washed down through his body in nauseating waves before it finally settled into a dull, aching throb. And through it all, he was aware of two arms holding him close, of lips brushing his cheek and temple and a voice murmuring soothingly in his ear.

Gradually, those sensations overpowered the negative ones, and Jack found himself relaxing into Ianto's embrace. It was comforting and reassuring, and somehow helped to make the agony of resurrection not seem quite so bad.

"Yan..."

"I'm here, love. Just like I promised."

Tears stung Jack's eyes, and he relaxed a little in Ianto's embrace.

"Thankyou."

He continued to lie there for a while, taking solace in Ianto's arms before finally moving – albeit very reluctantly.

"Easy," Ianto murmured, watching with concern as Jack eased himself up. "Go slow, Jack. You might still be a little weak."

"I think I'm okay," Jack murmured, only to have his knees buckle. Ianto was at his side in an instant, arms around his waist to support him.

"Not yet, you're not. C'mon, back into bed with you."

"No," Jack protested, feebly trying to resist. "Please, Ianto..."

"Jack, you need to rest, and I'm going to... Hold on, what did you just call me?"

Jack looked up at him bemusedly.

"I called you Ianto. That is your name, right...?"

"Well, yes... but you couldn't pronounce it! You just called me 'Yan'!"

"I suppose I can keep calling you that if you want. Might do anyway. But you're the one who gave me a lesson in saying your name properly."

Ianto snorted derisively.

"You were hardly paying attention at the time. Too fixated on dogs, if I remember. Jack... are you okay? I mean, are you really, _really_ okay?"

Jack stared back at him wearily, and for the very first time since Ianto had first met him, his eyes reflected his age and experience. Ianto saw the renewed maturity there, and a part of him wanted to weep for the innocent child that was quite possibly lost for good.

"I'm okay," Jack confirmed quietly. "But... I would really like a bath. I feel like I went twelve rounds with a Slitheen."

Smiling, Ianto helped him up off the bed, and ushered him to the door.

"I think we can do that. C'mon, cariad. Let's run you a bath."

* * *

_to be continued..._


	39. Acceptance

A/N: _In order to maintain the "T" rating on this site, I've cut a section from this chapter. If you're a consenting adult, and you want to read the NC17 version, then you'll need to check it out at my LJ site. The link can be found on my profile page._

* * *

"I feel strange," Jack confessed as Ianto helped him into the bath. Concern flashed across Ianto's face, and he began searching for any sign that Jack was still sick.

"In what way? Is your stomach upset?"

"No," Jack reassured him. He sighed a little as he sank into the hot water. "I don't mean like that. It's just..."

"Take your time," Ianto told him as he sat on the edge of the tub and ran a damp washcloth across Jack's shoulders and back. A soft moan escaped Jack's lips that Ianto was not entirely sure was innocent.

"I remember my life," Jack said finally. He played idly with the foamy bubbles that Ianto had added to the hot water without a second thought. The sight brought a hint of a smile to Ianto's lips. Maybe the innocent little boy wasn't completely gone after all.

"I remember most things, at least," Jack corrected himself. "I mean, I remembered all along, but when I was still a prisoner, it was all pretty hazy." He uttered a frustrated grunt. "I'm not explaining myself too well."

"I think I understand," Ianto assured him. "When you were a prisoner, you behaved the way that everyone expected you to."

"Like a monster," Jack agreed. "Something like that. I stopped thinking, and just reacted to everything that was happening around me without thought. They expected me to behave like some sort of animal, so that's how I acted. At first, it was my way of fighting back. They wanted me to tell them what I knew, about the Doctor, and about the future. It was my way of saying 'screw you'. But then, after a while, it got harder to think like a person. In the end, it was just easier to..."

"Go feral?" Ianto suggested lightly, and Jack nodded.

"I guess so, yeah. I mean, I did kind of remember that I was still a person, despite how I was being treated, but after a while I stopped trying to hold on to my humanity and just became the animal they treated me as. When you came along, a part of my did understand you, but by then I'd conditioned myself pretty thoroughly to behave like the animal that I was when you started looking after me. And it had been pretty easy to maintain it, because everyone who came into contact with me was either cruel or indifferent."

"Even Gage?" Ianto wondered, all the while quietly marvelling at the way that this most recent, traumatic death seemed to have finally tipped the balance and washed away the remnants of Jack's most prolific childlike behaviour and personality.

"Gage tried. When he first started he tried to make it better for me, just like you, but the one in charge... the one the Daleks killed..."

"Spence?"

"Yeah, him. He caught Gage trying to slip me some fresh food, and he beat him unconscious. Gage never came back into my room after that. Not until you brought him in."

Ianto felt ill as the reality of Jack's words hit home.

"That day that I gave you the apple... If Hartman hadn't been there, Spence probably would have done the same to me."

Jack peered up at him with a curious gaze.

"Would it have stopped you from helping me?"

"I don't know," Ianto admitted truthfully. "I'd like to say it wouldn't have, but who knows?"

Jack shifted a little and rested his head against Ianto's thigh.

"I don't think it would have. You're strong and brave. My Ianto."

Ianto smiled, touched by Jack's simple faith in him.

"My Jack."

Jack hesitated.

"What she called me... You know that Jack isn't my real name, don't you?"

"I figured as much. It doesn't matter, love. You'll always be Jack to me."

"Not Joe?"

Ianto smacked him lightly on the shoulder, causing Jack to giggle softly.

"Don't be cheeky. You know I only called you that because you weren't exactly forthcoming at the time with your name. And besides, you answered to it happily enough."

"I know," Jack agreed. "I didn't mind, you know. It was nice, having someone call me something other than 'freak'."

Ianto watched him thoughtfully, rubbing the washcloth in soothing circles over Jack's shoulders.

"Jack, you said you felt strange. How do you mean? Strange in what way?"

Jack frowned a little, and didn't seem to be able to put it into words.

"It's hard to explain."

"Well, how about you try to give me some sort of example?"

Gradually, Jack focused on the bath, and on the bubbles that frothed around him.

"This bath. I know I should just wash myself, but a part of me just wants to..."

"Play?" Ianto suggested lightly, and Jack nodded. He looked embarrassed, Ianto thought sadly. He leaned down and kissed the top of Jack's head.

"You've got two sides of your personality at war with each other, but the truth is that there's no right or wrong answer, and no right or wrong actions. If you're having a bath, and you want to play with the bubbles, then why not? Don't inhibit yourself, Jack. Act however you feel comfortable. I promise that it won't change how much I love you."

Jack nuzzled Ianto's thigh with his cheek, and hummed softly. Ianto smiled at the sound. It was the most audible evidence of Jack's pleasure and contentment, and it gave him a warm feeling throughout his body.

"I love you too," Jack murmured. "Love you so much."

Jack tilted his head up, a hopeful look on his face. Ianto didn't disappoint. He closed the gap between them and captured Jack's lips in a prolonged and tender kiss.

Immediately. Ianto felt the difference between this one and their last kiss. Before, Jack's efforts had been clumsy and uncertain, and tempered by grief. Now, Ianto finally understood why Jack had just a reputation with the Doctor and Rose for his sexual prowess. He could think of no cliché to apply, and nor did he even want to try and think of one. All he knew was that kissing Jack right then was perhaps the hottest experience he'd had for a long time. Forget any concerns about Jack getting aroused – Ianto could feel his own pants tightening to the point of discomfort as he sat there enjoying the experience that was being kissed by Jack.

An unexpected pressure on his crotch snapped him back to awareness, and Ianto pulled away from Jack in shock. Jack's hand was quite unashamedly on his cock, rubbing it through the material of his denims.

"Jack, what are you...?"

His question was stymied when Jack pulled him in for a second kiss that was even more intense than the first. He never missed a beat, and if Ianto had had any lingering doubts about Jack's mentality, they were erased completely when Jack unzipped his pants with deft skill and slipped his hand inside the material.

Ianto found himself groaning into Jack's mouth. When he finally managed to pull away again, it was to find Jack watching him with a disconcerting mixture of adult lust and childish nervousness.

"I remember sex," Jack said so simply and matter-of-factly that he had Ianto blushing bright red.

"Jack..."

"I remember how I can make you feel good," Jack whispered in a seductive voice that sent Ianto's equilibrium spinning out of control.

"Jack..."

"I want to do this for you," Jack told him with utter sincerity, and Ianto's breath hitched loudly as Jack's hand found its way past the flimsy barrier of his boxer shorts to fondle him with a practiced touch. "I love you, and I want to show you how much. I want to prove how much."

Ianto initiated the kiss that time, but at the same time he gently eased Jack's hand out of his pants and away from his cock. When they broke apart again, Ianto could see the beginnings of panic in Jack's face at the perceived rejection.

"I'm sorry," Jack stammered, and Ianto wondered whether Jack was remembering his last disastrous attempt to seduce him. "I shouldn't have... I'm sorry..."

"Hush," Ianto murmured reassuringly. He zipped up his jeans as quickly and discreetly as he could – not an easy task given that he was well on his way to a full erection – and then drew Jack back into his arms. "It's fine. You don't have apologise. I'm not mad, and you didn't do anything wrong. In fact, I'd say you were doing everything very, _very_ right."

Jack looked up at him, confused.

"But you don't want me to..."

"Not yet. I'm not ready for that yet. Can you understand that?"

"I guess so," Jack mumbled, sounding very much as though he didn't. Ianto stroked his fingers lightly over Jack's hair.

"I'm not saying no, Jack. Just... not yet. You need to understand that for me, having sex is a big deal. I need to be totally ready."

"So... You will eventually?"

Ianto swallowed his nerves and embarrassment. Jack was able to talk about this, so there was no reason why he couldn't do the same.

"Yes," he answered, marvelling that he managed to keep his voice from breaking. "Eventually... yes."

"I understand," Jack said, sounding much less disappointed that time.

Silence fell between them, and Ianto took a moment to reflect on the fact that he had just agreed to have sex with Jack at some point in the probably near future. Beyond that was the realisation that far from repulsing him, as he had once thought gay sex might, it was actually turning him on. He shifted minutely, trying to ease the uncomfortable tightness in his pants. Apparently, this time it was _he _who would be needing that cold shower.

"I just thought you were angry at me," Jack admitted. "Like that last time when I tried kissing you." He paused, and frowned at the memory. "And damn, didn't I ever bugger _that_ up! If they'd killed you, it would have been all my fault..."

"Don't," Ianto warned him. "Don't go there, Jack. Nothing that's happened has been your fault. Not even Lisa, not entirely. Personally, I'm amazed that after everything you've been through, you've managed to recover like this."

Jack looked up at him with such an open and unguarded expression that it wrenched Ianto's heart.

"You know it's because of you, don't you? I owe you everything."

"Did you used to be this sentimental?" Ianto asked with a smile.

"No." Jack's rapid answer wiped away any lingering amusement that Ianto had. "Never cared about anyone but myself, and I never said I love you to anyone without a hidden agenda. Last time I said those words to someone, I stole her ship and never looked back. Even after I met Rose and the Doctor, I still couldn't say it."

"You've said it to me a lot," Ianto pointed out, and Jack could hear the sudden uncertainty in the younger man's voice. If Jack was admitting now to never really meaning it when he said 'I love you', then what did that mean for Ianto?

Jack took his hand and kissed it softly.

"I was a prisoner for so long, and for so long the only reason people touched me was to cause me more pain. Occasionally someone would try to help me, but it never lasted long. Then you came. You didn't let anyone bully you or scare you... not even me. You saved me, and I will always love you for that."

Ianto sighed, an unpleasant feeling settling in his stomach.

"You don't love me, Jack. You've got a case of hero-worship happening, but that's not love. You don't know me well enough to say you love me."

"Maybe I don't know you so well," Jack conceded. "But I want to know you better. And I don't think it'll make any difference."

"Jack..."

"No, please, let me finish. You know what I was like before. Could barely think for myself. When I did start thinking for myself again, thanks to you, I lost a lot of those old inhibitions that I used to have. I learnt to say 'I love you' to you, and mean it, because that's how I really felt. I didn't have to second-guess myself, and I didn't think about motivations. Back then, I wouldn't have understood what motivations or agendas were. I just knew that you took care of me, and I loved you. That hasn't changed. I don't have any ulterior motives. I just know that I love you, and I don't want to ever lose you, and nothing you say or do will ever change that."

Ianto smiled. He couldn't help it. Jack had presented a damned good argument, but what had him so amused was that whilst he'd started out sounding like a reasonable and mature adult, he'd ended up sounding like a petulant five year-old. Jack pouted, realising that Ianto was grinning.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Ianto assured him. "It's just that I used to think about love as the same as getting hit by lightning. That it was sudden. Mam always said that if it hits you suddenly, then it's just infatuation, but that real love is like a slow burn. It happens over time, and is meant to last."

"What are we?" Jack asked softly and anxiously. "Infatuation or love? Because I really, _really_ love you, Ianto, but if you don't love me..."

Ianto silenced him with a long kiss.

"It's definitely not infatuation. That much I'm sure of."

Jack smiled faintly, enjoying the hot water that soothed his aching body, as well as Ianto's arms around him shoulders.

"That's good. I can wait."

* * *

Jack's exhaustion was obvious, and when Ianto finally helped him out of the bath, all Jack wanted was to go back to bed. Ianto conceded and helped Jack back to their room. Upon entering, though, Ianto thought they'd walked into the wrong room. Gone were the two single beds, to be replaced by one enormous bed that was adorned with comfortable and colourful duvet. Jack, however, didn't seem at all bothered. He wandered over to the bed, and sat down with a sigh.

"This is our room, right?" Ianto asked tentatively.

"Yeah," Jack confirmed. "The TARDIS just made a few discreet changes."

"Discreet? Jack, are you suggesting that the ship wants us to sleep together?"

Jack grinned, but he was too exhausted to put much effort behind it. He missed 'lecherous', and came out looking sweet instead.

"What can I say? She's a smart girl. She knows we belong together."

Ianto only just resisted an urge to roll his eyes.

"You are being a soppy git," he said, smiling fondly as he helped Jack strip down to his shorts. Jack shrugged.

"I love you," he said simply. "I can wait for you to catch up. It's not like I don't have the time to spare."

A frown flitted across Ianto's face.

"Do you remember what the Doctor explained about you?"

"Remember, and understand," Jack confirmed in a considerably more subdued tone. "I'm forever. Never gonna die. Not permanently, anyway." He paused, and Ianto saw a palpable pain in his eyes. "I'm going to outlive everyone. You, Rose... Even the Doctor. Everyone."

"I'm sorry," Ianto murmured, although he wasn't entirely certain that he knew what he was apologising for. Jack smiled tremulously.

"At least you know you don't have to be scared of losing me, right?"

"Right," Ianto agreed softly. Jack crawled under the covers, and threw a pleading look at Ianto.

"Will you sleep with me?"

Ianto blanched at the blatant question.

"Jack, I'm sorry, but I'm just not ready."

Jack raised an eyebrow at him, and Ianto knew instantly that he'd misinterpreted Jack's request.

"All I meant was sleep, literally. Not sex. Please, Yan? I just want to cuddle. It'll help me sleep."

It was a plea that Ianto couldn't refuse. He stripped down to his tee-shirt and boxer shorts before he could give himself a chance to think twice, and climbed in next to Jack.

Jack hummed softly in pleasure as they curled up together, and the sound drew a smile to Ianto's face.

"I do love you," Jack whispered as Ianto urged him to snuggle in close. "You'll see. I'll prove it."

Ianto kissed the top of Jack's head.

"You don't have to prove anything. I already know. Hush, now. You need sleep."

Jack hummed again incoherently even as he gave him to his exhaustion. Ianto, however, lay awake for a long while afterwards, relishing the sensation of Jack's body in his arms and quietly marvelling at the realisation that maybe, just maybe he didn't have quite so much catching up to do after all.

* * *

Jack awoke to an empty bed, and felt a rush of panic that was quickly eased when he realised Ianto was sitting at the end of the bed.

"Thought you'd gone," Jack confessed, sounding embarrassed and relieved at the same time.

"No, I'm not going anywhere," Ianto assured him. "I just needed to think."

Slowly, Jack sat up, his eyes fixed firmly on Ianto. Had Ianto spared him a glance, he would have seen the beginnings of fear in the older man's eyes.

"About what?"

Ianto did look at him, then, with an appraising gaze.

"You know, I half expected to find you'd regressed again when you woke up. I'm not sure why. I just went to sleep thinking it wasn't going to last. But, it has. You really are back to your old self, aren't you?"

Jack contemplated that before answering.

"Yes and no. I'm not the same, not completely. I... I think I'm better, though, thanks to you. Ianto, what's wrong?"

Ianto stared at him with a haunted gaze.

"It was partly to protect me, you know. Insisting that I couldn't stay with you. It was when I realised that I'd started becoming more attached to you than I should."

"You already explained, Yan."

"Not completely, I didn't. The main reason I tried to dissociate myself was because I thought that once you were back to normal, you wouldn't want me around anymore."

Jack gaped at him in disbelief.

"You thought that? But it's not true! I do want you! I love you!"

Ianto sighed softly.

"Do you really love me, Jack? Or is it just because I helped to rescue you from Torchwood?"

"That's part of it," Jack conceded as he crawled over to sit beside Ianto. "But it's a hundred little things, too. It's that you look at me and don't think 'freak'. It's that you stuck with me and didn't give up on me. You know what I did to... to Lisa, and you forgave me. You didn't leave me behind, not even to save your own life. How can I _not_ love you?"

When Ianto didn't speak, Jack leaned in slowly, taking his time and making his intentions obvious. No objection was forthcoming, and Jack closed the distance to kiss Ianto with every bit of emotion that he had. He put every ounce of love that he felt into that kiss, and didn't stop until he felt Ianto relax against him.

Ianto was bemused to note that their roles seemed to have shifted, and suddenly it was he who was being held and comforted by Jack. He felt lips brushing over his cheek and jaw, moving down to his throat. A sigh of pleasure escaped Ianto's lips as Jack gently sucked on the tender flesh, and he felt himself melt a little more into Jack's embrace.

He knew where they were headed and felt powerless to stop it. More to the point, he didn't even want to try.

"Let me love you," Jack whispered. "Please, Ianto."

Ianto was never entirely sure whether he had actually verbally given his consent, but Jack seemed to sense it intuitively for suddenly they were kissing again with renewed fervour. This time, Ianto made no attempt to put a stop to it.

"Lie down," Jack murmured, guiding Ianto to lie down on the bed after divesting him of his tee-shirt. "I want to explore you."

Ianto's gaze flickered uneasily to the door. He'd never live this down if either the Doctor or Rose walked in on them now. Jack smiled as he played briefly with the hair that covered Ianto's chest.

"Don't worry. The TARDIS won't let either of them through that door until we're ready for them. Now, just relax. Let me take care of you for once."

* * *

Ianto lay there, breathless and panting, and in a pleasantly dazed state of mind. For a while, Ianto wasn't aware of anything much until he felt warm pressure against his side. Dragging himself back into awareness, he found Jack lying beside him, watching him with eyes that were bright with tears. He could feel Jack's interest pressing against his hip, but Jack didn't appear to be in any hurry to do anything about it.

What's with the tears?" Ianto asked, once he was confident that he had full control over his verbal skills. Jack reached out and touched his lips.

"I want to tell everyone how much I love you," Jack said with a somewhat watery smile. It was Ianto's turn to chuckle, then.

"You soppy git."

"Can't help it," Jack said with a half shrug. "I don't ever want to leave you."

The smile faded from Ianto's face.

"Jack, you do understand, don't you? I'm going to age, but you won't. When I'm ninety, and I'm an old, frail man who couldn't get it up to save his life, you're still going to be like you are now. I doubt that you'll still be interested in me then."

Anguish filled Jack's face.

"Don't _you_ understand? I loved you long before I remembered what sex was. Before I understood there was a difference between kissing an adult and kissing a kid. I loved you before all that!"

Ianto felt a shiver pass through him as he realised the truth of Jack's words. Feeling a surge of emotion through him that might just have been love, Ianto claimed Jack's mouth in a fierce kiss. He shifted his hips instinctively, and Jack groaned long and low at the delicious friction the movement created against his hardness.

"I think," Ianto whispered as he stared at Jack with tears in his own eyes, "that it's about time I stopped asking idiot questions, and just accepted the truth."

Jack returned his gaze with an open and hopeful look.

"What truth, Yan?"

Ianto kissed Jack again lingeringly.

"That I love you, too."

* * *

_to be continued...._


	40. A Taste of Normal

A/N: _Apologies for the short chapter, but it suited to cut it off where I did. So, in hindsight, apologies for the cliffie as well....  
_

* * *

The Doctor was in the middle of preparing himself a cup of tea when he sensed the change. It was as though another puzzle piece had finally slotted into the right place. He smiled, sensing the TARDIS's satisfaction as well. Jack and Ianto had finally worked through the biggest of their issues, and perhaps now they could all move forward.

"What are you smirking at?" Rose asked, cutting in and derailing his train of thought. "You look like the cat that got the cream."

"Jack's awake," the Doctor explained. "He seems to be more or less recovered, and not just from his most recent death."

Rose's eyes widened as she realised what he meant.

"You mean he's back to normal?"

"Well, normal is a fairly subjective term, isn't it? I'd be more inclined to say that he's back to functioning as a mature adult… albeit, with maybe a few extra personality quirks."

"But that's good, isn't it?"

The Doctor nodded.

"Yes, it's good. We're coming to the crossroads, though, aren't we? Jack's going to have to start choosing his own path. We can't dictate to him any longer."

Rose frowned a little. She suspected she knew what he was saying, but didn't want to accept it.

"Doctor? What are you trying to say? That he might leave?"

"I'm saying, Rose, that if he wants to leave, we can't stop him."

* * *

When Jack emerged from their bedroom that time, he was quietly amazed at the way everything seemed different from his newly reacquired adult perspective. Previously, he'd been in awe of the TARDIS, like a little child observing something wondrous that was beyond their comprehension. He still felt awe, but it was tempered now by memories of his original time spent as a companion of the Doctor.

As Jack walked along the corridor, he ran his fingertips over the coral wall with a loving touch, and felt her sing gently to him in return. Her song had been with him almost constantly since his return to her after the Canary Wharf disaster. Any time that he'd felt any degree of fear or uncertainty, he had felt her loving touch in his mind, comforting and reassuring him. Again and again, he sensed her sorrow and regret at abandoning him on Satellite Five, and her shared guilt for what he'd suffered as a result.

Sighing, Jack slowed and turned to press himself against the cool wall.

"I forgive you," he whispered, "and I forgive him. I'm going to be around far too long to be holding grudges. Just... promise me you'll never run away from me again, because I don't think I could stand being abandoned a second time."

"We promise."

Jack turned slowly, showing no surprise at seeing the Doctor standing there. The Time Lord's expression was inscrutable as Jack approached.

"It worked," Jack said quietly. He splayed his arms, as though offering himself for inspection. "I'm back. I remember everything. Well, nearly everything. I'm myself again."

The Doctor quirked an eyebrow.

"No, Jack, I think you're an entirely new creature, and I mean that in a good way. What you've been through has given you a new and unique perspective that you never had before."

"What are you trying to say?" Jack asked. The Doctor smiled, a touch sadly.

"You were always a good person, Jack. Always a bigger on the inside. I think you can figure it out."

Jack huffed in irritation.

"You still to play mind games, don't you?"

The grin that lit up the Doctor's face was infectious, and Jack couldn't help but smile in return.

"There, now, there's the famous Harkness grin," the Doctor said enthusiastically, and Jack's smile widened. It faded just as quickly, though, and when Jack spoke again the Doctor could hear traces of the insecure child in his voice.

"You won't, will you? Leave me, I mean. I couldn't cope if I was left behind again."

The Doctor closed the distance between them, and gently cupped Jack's cheeks with his palms before placing a feather-light kiss on Jack's forehead.

"I will never abandon you again, Jack. I promise. And thank you for forgiving me."

Jack didn't speak. He didn't need to. The look on his face spoke volumes, and the Doctor responded without hesitation, pulling Jack in close for a prolonged and affectionate hug that Jack returned with interest. When they finally parted, both men wore more genuine smiles; the tension between them finally gone.

"Care to help me with a few minor repairs, Captain?" the Doctor asked. Jack's grin could easily have lit the TARDIS by its own power, and the Doctor laughed in delight. He took Jack's hand without hesitation, and tugged Jack along towards the control room.

* * *

Jack felt like he'd finally come home. As he sat by the open panel and listened to the Doctor curse fluidly in Gallifreyan, Jack reflected that he hadn't felt this happy or at ease since their arrival in Cardiff prior to discovering Margaret the Slitheen. Then, he hadn't had a care in the world. He'd had a home, a family that loved and accepted him...

He couldn't quite suppress an unpleasant shudder as those memories inevitably led to less happy ones. Satellite Five, the Daleks, dying that first time... and even worse than dying, watching the TARDIS vanish in front of his eyes.

A cool palm on his cheek drew him gently out of his memories, and Jack blinked dazedly as the Doctor's face swam into focus.

"I'm sorry, Jack," the Doctor murmured sadly. Jack rubbed self-consciously at his eyes.

"Said I forgave you."

"I know, but it doesn't help it to hurt any less."

"No," Jack agreed softly. "It doesn't."

"Jack, if you'd rather not talk about it, then I understand but just how long did you wait on Satellite Five before you gave up on me coming back?"

Jack's gaze dropped, and so did the Doctor's stomach.

"I guess... around the equivalent of one Earth month."

"Rassilon... How did you survive? You must have been the only living thing left on the satellite."

"I was. Just me, Dalek dust, and a whole lot of rotting corpses. I ended up holing up in one of the Big Brother houses, and setting my manipulator to scan for your bio-signature at regular intervals. I think part of me knew you weren't coming back, but I waited anyway. I waited until I was out of food, fresh water... But the time I made the jump back in time to Earth, I was nearly dead of dehydration."

"How on Earth did you survive the trip through the vortex? It should have killed... oh..."

Jack smiled ruefully.

"It did kill me. Of course, I didn't realise it at the time. I just thought I'd gotten lucky. That is, until I found out _when_ I'd landed. I totally overshot the twenty-first century, and landed in 1869." He shook his head and fresh tears stung his eyes at the remembered despair. "I thought that was it. My manipulator burnt out from the jump, making it useless, and I had no way to fix it. Thought I was condemned to living out my life in a backward time on a backward planet, so I figured I might as well make the most of it."

The Doctor's eyebrows rose in surprise as he read between the lines.

"You married."

"Yeah. Susan, her name was. I was taken in by her family not long after I arrived back on Earth, and we fell in love. We had eight years together before she died of pneumonia."

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah. So was I. I mean, seriously, _pneumonia_? Pneumonia only exists in the history books by my time!"

"Jack," the Doctor said quietly, "when did you realise?"

Jack didn't need any help understanding what he meant.

"It was 1892. That was when I realised I couldn't die. I'd given up hope of finding you, or anyone else who could help me, so I decided to head somewhere that I wouldn't stand out so badly. I went to America, but I never even made it to the mainland. I got into a fight on Ellis Island, and a man shot me through the heart, When I woke up covered in my own blood, with a hole in my shirt and not a mark on my body, that was when I started to question all of those so-called near death experiences. I took the next boat back to the England, and headed for Cardiff. Figured if I hung around the rift long enough, I'd find you. 'Course, by then it also occurred to me that I should have looked about thirty years older than I did." Jack shook his head. "I was scared, confused and alone. I did what any normal guy would do. I drank myself into oblivion, and in the end that was how they found me."

"Torchwood?"

"Yeah. Torchwood. Alice Guppy and Emily Holroyd, their names were. The barracudas of Cardiff."

The Doctor chuckled softly, and Jack fell quiet, giving no hint that he was willing to say anymore. The Doctor drew in a long breath, steeling himself for a negative reaction.

"Jack, how did it happen? How did someone manage to get the better of you so badly that they were able to keep you locked up for the next hundred years?"

Jack grimaced.

"Why do you need to know, Doctor?"

"Because I know you, Jack. You wouldn't have gone down without a fight, and there was no one they could threaten you with... or was there?"

Jack didn't flinch, or look away. He simply watched the Doctor with a hooded gaze that gave nothing at all away. The Doctor spoke again in a calm tone that belied his own nerves. He knew he was treading on shaky ground.

"Jack, I'd like your permission to back to Cardiff, to when Torchwood captured you. I'd like to see for myself what happened."

"Why? Can't you just let the past lie, just this once? It happened, and it can't be changed. Why interfere?"

"I don't intend to interfere, Jack. Just observe. I want to understand."

It was a pathetic reason to offer, and the Doctor knew it. He fully expected Jack to baulk then and there, and was bracing himself for an angry outburst.

"Okay."

The Doctor stared at him, astonished by his easy acquiescence.

"What, that's it? No argument? No 'this is a bad idea' lecture?"

Jack smiled very faintly and offered a lopsided shrug.

"You're a big boy. You should be able to decide for yourself whether it's a bad idea or not. I just have two requests."

"And they would be...?"

"Take Ianto with you. Not Rose. They didn't know what you looked like back then, but they did know you were travelling with a girl from London. You can mask your accent and dress down your appearance with period clothes, but Rose will stand out like a sore thumb no matter how appropriately she dresses. Ianto won't."

The Doctor nodded slowly. He wasn't entirely sure he agreed with Jack's logic, and Rose certainly wasn't going to like it, but instinct warned him not to argue.

"All right, Jack. I'll take Ianto with me instead of Rose. What was the second thing?"

"Whatever you do, don't go inside Torchwood. Stay away from it, no matter what you see or what happens. Paradoxes aside, if they catch you it'll be a disaster."

* * *

_to be continued...._


	41. A View To The Past

"I really am not comfortable with this."

The Doctor looked sideways at Ianto, and smiled wryly. The young man looked dashing in period clothing for the late 1800s. Jack had apparently tried three times to coax Ianto into indulging in a bit of role playing later on, to which Ianto had responded with an exasperated eye roll. The Doctor was positive that he'd heard Ianto mutter something under his breath about burning the clothes as soon as they got back.

"No? Jack was right, you do look quite dashing."

Yet another eye roll.

"That isn't what I meant, and you know it."

The grin that adorned the Doctor's face tightened just fractionally.

"I know."

"Just tell me why," Ianto begged him. "Now, while we're away from the TARDIS. Is it just plain curiosity? Something else entirely?"

"I can't explain it," the Doctor admitted, and wanted to cringe at the expression on Ianto's face.

"You don't know? You're dredging all of this up again for Jack, and you don't even know why? Bloody hell, I'm going back to the TARDIS."

"Too late."

Ianto turned sharply, and gasped a little in shock. At the other end of the alley, a man was being held by two very burly lads while a third belted the living daylights out of him.

"Jack," Ianto whispered in dismay, and instinctively started forward.

"No," the Doctor growled, grabbing him and pulling him into the shadows of the alley, and out of sight. "We can't interfere. We can only observe."

Ianto pulled free angrily, but didn't try to move forward again.

The man doing the punching finally stopped and moved away. Ianto felt a surge of relief that was short-lived, and could only watch in horror as the man smashed the bottom off a discarded liquor bottle and drove it into Jack's stomach.

They cleaned him out of all of his cash and valuable while he was still bleeding out, and left him slumped there against the tavern wall, dead.

"What now?" Ianto asked bitterly. He wanted nothing more than to go to Jack and get the glass out of his stomach, and then hold him until he woke up. The only thing stopping him was the memory of Jack's stern warning to him earlier that he was not to try and stop anything that he saw from happening – no matter how hard it was to witness. "Are we supposed to just leave him here? Doctor?"

"Quiet," the Doctor hissed. His expression had changed completely, and he was the epitome of intensity. Ianto looked in the direction that the Doctor was staring, and felt his stomach turn unpleasantly. There were two women standing not too far away. They didn't appear to be aware of the presence of Ianto and the Doctor; their attention was very firmly on Jack.

"Alice Guppy and Emily Holroyd," the Doctor whispered grimly, recalling his conversation with Jack from the previous day. "The barracudas of Torchwood, Jack called them."

A wild gasp alerted them to Jack's resurrection, and Ianto wanted to weep at the man's obvious pain, distress and confusion.

"He didn't understand what was happening to him at all," he said bitterly. The Doctor didn't answer, but observed the scene before them grimly.

It was over in less than a minute. Jack realised he was being watched, attempted a bit of crass flirting that had Ianto rolling his eyes, and was then taken down with calculated efficiency.

"He can't have expected that," Ianto whispered as they two women dragged Jack's limp form into a waiting carriage.

"No," the Doctor agreed. "He didn't."

"So, what now?"

"Now, we wait. Jack said he was initially held inside Torchwood for approximately three or four hours before they released him in exchange for doing a job for them. We need to find the Griffin Arms Tavern, and wait there."

* * *

Ianto was at the bar, getting himself a whiskey, when Jack came in storming in nearly five hours later. It had been a mind-numbing wait, and Ianto had been tempted to drink himself into oblivion more than once.

He froze as Jack strode up to the bar and demanded a full bottle of whiskey. Ianto dared not spare him a look, and for his part Jack appeared to not even notice his presence. The barkeep handed over a bottle and a glass only after Jack waved a wad of cash under his nose, and the Captain then headed over to a dark corner to wallow.

"Ah, Jack," the Doctor murmured as he joined Ianto at the bar. "Liquor never solved anything."

Ianto glanced at him sourly before returning his attention to Jack. He appeared to be talking to himself in between large swallows from the glass that he kept refilling, but Ianto was no lip reader.

"Do you know what he's saying?" Ianto asked finally. The Doctor answered with obvious reluctance. His expression was stony.

"He's saying 'no, I won't do it. I won't join them. I won't betray him'. He's saying it over and over again."

Ianto felt ill.

"He's been here on Earth for how long now...?"

"Thirty years."

"And he still won't do anything to betray you! You don't deserve his loyalty, Doctor."

The Doctor looked tired all of a sudden.

"I know that."

They watched as Jack finished the bottle, and then called for another. Ianto was about to asked just what it was they were waiting for, when he realised that the barkeep was pouring something into the bottle before taking it over to Jack. He turned to ask the Doctor if he'd seen the same thing, only to freeze when he spotted the familiar figures of Emily Holroyd and Alice Guppy, watching Jack with predatory smiles from the other side of the tavern.

"Doctor...?"

"I know," the Doctor whispered. "This is it. This is where they take him."

"They had the barkeep poison him," Ianto growled. "Bitches. No wonder he was caught off-guard. He would never have seen that coming."

They watched as Jack drank the tainted liquor and collapsed shortly after.

"Is he...?"

"Dead," the Doctor confirmed in a low voice. "Of course, no one here would realise that they'd just witnessed a murder. They'll all think he'd drunk. Look out, here we go..."

Holroyd and Guppy wasted no time. They motioned to two men who had been sitting at a nearby table, and they got up and obediently carried Jack's lifeless form out of the tavern.

"C'mon," the Doctor said as soon as they were gone. Ianto followed, but was confused when the Doctor turned left on exiting the tavern, away from the TARDIS.

"Doctor? Where are you going? The TARDIS is that way..."

"I know," the Doctor answered with an almost obscene enthusiasm. "But Torchwood is _this_ way."

Then he was off, jogging away up the cobbled street. Cursing angrily, Ianto took off after him.

* * *

The Doctor was deceptive in his speed. Ianto could have sworn he was only moving at a loping gait, and yet they had made it almost to what would one way become Roald Dahl Plass before Ianto was finally able to catch him.

"What are you doing?" Ianto demanded breathlessly. He wasn't sure whether or not to be relieved that Guppy and Holroyd were nowhere in sight. It either meant that they hadn't yet arrived back with Jack's body, or they had and were already somewhere within their base.

"I'm finding out the truth," the Doctor stated. "Jack was trained Time Agent from the fifty-first century, Ianto. At this point in time, Torchwood should not have had any means of confining him, not for a prolonged period. Jack should have been able to escape sooner or later. I want to know exactly what these people did that kept him from escaping."

"Jack may have been a Time Agent," Ianto argued, "and he may be from the future, but he's still human! We saw how they took him down at the tavern. How much more do you need to see? Doctor, please, this is pointless. You're the one who insisted that we can't interfere. Tell me, how much good is this going to do?"

"Too late now," the Doctor murmured, and Ianto's heart stuttered when he saw Guppy and Holroyd enter the square, leading a cart pulled by a well-groomed horse. Jack's body was just visible in the cart.

"Doctor..." Ianto whispered tensely.

"Just keep quiet, and go along with whatever I say," the Doctor warned him before turning to the two women and holding out a square of psychic paper.

"Mr Gage Adams at your service," he introduced himself in a perfect imitation of Gage's broad Irish accent. "And this is my associate, Mr Jones. We've been sent here from Torchwood House in Glasgow to inspect your facilities."

Holroyd and Guppy exchanged looks before Holroyd spoke with restrained suspicion.

"We never received notification of such a visit."

"Her Majesty thought it best that we arrive unannounced. That way, we'd be more likely to get a true picture of how Torchwood Cardiff is operating." The Doctor raised an eyebrow sceptically as he made a show of looking past them to where Jack's body was sprawled in the back of the cart. "Unless this is a bad time...?"

To Ianto's quiet dismay, Guppy offered them a rather shark-like grin.

"Not at all. You can help us secure our prisoner."

"Very well," the Doctor agreed. "Mr Jones?"

Ianto wanted to throttle the Time Lord as he stepped in to help carry Jack's body down into the depths of Torchwood Three.

"So, what's the story with this one?" Ianto asked, trying to keep his tone as detached as possible. Being inside the Cardiff facility with two women whose reputations for cruelty and madness had endured over a century, basically frightened the hell out of him. He wanted out of there as soon as possible.

"We don't believe him to be human," Holroyd told them. "Not entirely. It also appears that he can't be killed, so for the sake of the Empire we need to contain him."

"Sorry, did you say he can't be killed?" the Doctor echoed. Guppy grinned with mad delight.

"When he wakes up, I'll be more than happy to demonstrate."

"No, thankyou," the Doctor said with distaste. "That won't be necessary. I am curious, however, as to exactly how you intend to contain him."

"Well, we initially considered bringing him into the employ of Torchwood. After all, a man who cannot die would be a most valuable asset."

"But...?" the Doctor pressed. Holroyd smiled demurely.

"We reconsidered. We offered him a position with the Institute, and he refused. We don't make a habit of asking twice."

"So you're going to just keep him locked up, then?" Ianto asked. He struggled to keep any emotion out of his voice, and wasn't entirely sure just how successful he was. Neither woman seemed to notice, though.

"For the time being," Holroyd answered in a flippant tone that made Ianto want to slap her hard across her pretty face. "We will bring him out occasionally to experiment with."

"But for now," Guppy continued, "we just want to break his spirit, and the best way to break a man is through isolation."

They had come to a lower level, which consisted of only a long, dank corridor and an ominous steel door at the far end.

"In here, please," Holroyd stated, as though she was directing them to put away the groceries.

Ianto felt sick to his stomach as they carried Jack into the cell. This was turning out far worse than he could have imagined. They weren't just observing Jack's imprisonment – they were taking an active part in it. He wanted to scream, cry, do _something_, but he felt paralysed and helpless to act.

No sooner than they had set Jack down than the two women moved in and stripped Jack of everything but his long johns. They had just finished chaining him to the wall when Jack resurrected with a gasp.

"What...? Where...?" Then his gaze came to rest on Guppy and Holroyd, and realisation dawned. "Oh, brilliant. It's the hags from Hell, back for round two."

"We warned you," Holroyd said matter-of-factly. "If you'd accepted our offer, you'd still be a free man."

Hatred burned in Jack's eyes.

"I will never, _never_ betray the Doctor to this place. Do you hear me?"

"Oh, we hear you," Holroyd answered. "But not for long."

Jack stared at her with a potent mix of fear and suspicion on his face.

"What are you talking about?"

Again, that cruel smile that sent shudders through Ianto.

"Do you see that door?" Guppy asked. "It operates using a very special type of deadbolt. It has a time-lock, and once it closes it won't open again for six months."

Ianto risked a glance at Jack, and wasn't at all surprised to see the other man had gone noticeably pale.

"You can't do this! Let me go!"

"We're never going to let you go," Holroyd said flatly.

Jack looked past her to Ianto and the Doctor with wild, panic-stricken eyes.

"Help me! Please, don't let them do this!"

While Ianto looked away, unable to maintain eye contact, the Doctor walked forward to stand over Jack. The two stared at each other for a long and painful moment, neither saying a word. Then, suddenly, Jack uttered a soft, strangled gasp. Ianto looked back just in time to see a myriad of emotions flood Jack's face – predominantly shock, realisation, grief and despair.

He knew, Ianto realised in horror. Jack knew who it was that was standing before him. He'd recognised the Doctor.

Without a word, the Time Lord turned and walked out, with Guppy and Holroyd right behind him. Ianto delayed leaving for just a moment, long enough to register the utter hopelessness in Jack's eyes. Then, the door slammed shut and the time-lock slotted into place, cutting Jack off from everything and everyone.

* * *

Rose was pissed. There really was no other word for it. She had been all set to go with the Doctor, only to be told that Jack had specifically asked that she stay behind in the TARDIS, and that Ianto go instead. The Doctor had told her why, ignoring Ianto's face palm, and that had just pissed her off all over again.

So she was on her way to find Jack, and tell him exactly what she thought – none of it complimentary. Now that he was back in his right mind, she didn't feel the need to hold back and she had no intention of doing so.

Rose entered Jack and Ianto's room at full steam, only to be brought to a complete halt by the sight before her. Gone was the enormous bed that the TARDIS had gifted Jack and Ianto with, and in its place were the two original single beds.

Jack lay in his own bed, huddled beneath the bright duvet, cuddling his precious dog and blanket and crying silent tears. For an instant, Rose thought that Jack had regressed again. She ventured closer, not knowing what to say or do, and her anger dissipated as she got near enough to see his grief.

"Jack?" She sat carefully on the edge of the bed and touched her fingertips lightly to his tear-stained cheek. "What's wrong?"

Jack looked up at her, and the devastated look in his eyes just about broke her heart.

"Please don't be angry with me, Rose. I couldn't do anything about it. It had to be Ianto who went with the Doctor."

She couldn't help but feel a fresh spark of annoyance at his words.

"I can look after myself, you know. I wouldn't have let them Torchwood cows know who I was."

Jack shook his head.

"No. That isn't why. I gave that reason to the Doctor, but it isn't the real reason."

"Well, what then?"

Jack just stared at her, and suddenly realisation dawned.

"Oh my god..."

"I don't remember seeing you," Jack whispered. "I only remember seeing Yan and the Doctor."

"When did you see them? Please tell me it was before they caught you...? Oh god, it wasn't, was it?"

Jack shuddered and tightened his grip on the dog and blanket.

"I was poisoned in the tavern. That's how they got me back inside Torchwood. It was my own fault. After they let me go the first time, I went and got drunk. I never tasted the poison. When I came back, I was chained up in a little cell deep inside Torchwood Cardiff. Emily Holroyd and Alice Guppy were there, gloating over me. Told me the cell door had a time-lock on it, and once it was sealed, it wouldn't open again for six months. But there were two men there, as well. One of them couldn't bring himself to look at me, and the other just stared at me."

Tears filled Rose's eyes.

"Please tell me you didn't recognise him."

"Not at first. Different face, different body... but his eyes. Those eyes will never change, no matter what he looks like. I sat there, chained up like an animal, and had to watch him leave me behind for a second time. It felt like... like my world had ended all over again. He wanted to know why I didn't fight for my freedom? _That_ was why. I watched him walk away from me and leave me in the hands of those Torchwood psychos, and I just lost my will to fight."

"Why did you let him go?" Rose burst out. "Why didn't you stop him?"

The sadness in Jack's eyes was palpable, and he reached out to take her hand and pull her gently down onto the bed beside him.

"I know you understand why, Rose. You told me about what happened when you tried to save your father. You tried to change an established event, and it brought the reapers. I couldn't stop the Doctor from going because it had already happened. I remember it. The Doctor had to go, and he had to take Ianto with him. It would've been a disaster if they didn't go."

"I know," Rose said bitterly. "Still, I can't help thinking that there should've been some way to stop it from happening."

"There wasn't," Jack whispered as Rose curled in beside him. "It's a fixed event, Rose. It can't be changed, not without causing a paradox."

She stared at him incredulously.

"You really wouldn't want to do a thing to change what happened?"

"Of course I'd want to," Jack said bitterly. "But I know better. Do you think I'm happy about it, Rose? I'm not, and right now I just want to curl into a ball and scream until I'm hoarse."

His voice broke, and the tears came in a flood. Silently cursing whatever deity had condescended to deal Jack such a cruel fate, Rose wrapped her arms around him as best as she could and held him as he wept.

* * *

Ianto quickly realised that it was pointless trying to get the Doctor's attention as they walked back through Cardiff to the TARDIS. The Time Lord, for once, was absolutely cloaked in silence and ignored all attempts to communicate. As they neared the TARDIS, though, Ianto lunged forward and grabbed the Doctor's arm.

"We helped!" he said in a strangled voice. "We bloody helped them to lock him up!"

The Doctor didn't speak. He simply stared at Ianto with one eyebrow quirked and an expression on his face that told Ianto more than anything so far just how alien the Time Lord really was. Ianto drew in a ragged gasp of air.

"Just tell me one thing. Did you know it would happen that way?"

Still the Doctor didn't speak. Silence hung between them like a thick veil, and Ianto was just about ready to hit him when the Doctor finally responded.

"No. No, I didn't know what would happen." He paused as he looked grimly back at the door of the TARDIS. "But I think there's someone else who did."

* * *

Neither Rose nor Jack had moved an inch when the Doctor and Ianto walked in. Exchanging looks, they walked over to the bedside, and the Doctor crouched to bring himself to eye level with Jack.

"You remembered, didn't you? That's why you insisted that I take Ianto instead of Rose, and why you insisted I stay away from Torchwood."

Jack managed a watery smile.

"Knew you wouldn't be able to resist."

The Doctor sighed as all the pieces of the puzzle finally slotted into place.

"They never threatened you, or anyone else. They didn't have to."

"I realised who you were, and I thought you were abandoning me all over again. It... It broke me, and I didn't have anything left after that. It wasn't until now that I finally understood. You had no choice but to leave me there because you were only completing an event that, for me, had already happened."

"I think I'm getting a headache," Ianto muttered.

"Wibbly wobbly, timey wimey," the Doctor murmured humourlessly. "What happened today couldn't have happened any other way because even though it only happened for us right now in our timelines; for Jack, today's events happened over one hundred years ago in _his_ timelines. We couldn't change it or do anything to stop it..."

"Because it had already happened," Ianto concluded softly. "I think I understand it. I don't like it, but I understand."

"Jack?" Rose asked. "You gonna be okay?"

"I'm fine," Jack answered, though it was severely muffled by his toy dog. Ianto looked around at Rose and the Doctor.

"Could you give us some time? Please..."

They left quietly, without protest, and once they'd gone Ianto lay down on the bed behind Jack. He slipped his arms around the older man and spooned him lovingly.

"I can't imagine how it must have hurt," Ianto murmured. "I have to admit, I'm surprised you're not angry with me."

"Wasn't your fault," Jack insisted. He twisted around so that they were lying face to face. "You had to do it. And now that I remember it, I can remember how horrified you were... How unhappy you looked. I didn't understand why at the time, but I do now. It does hurt, but I don't blame anyone except Alice Guppy and Emily Holroyd."

Ianto brushed his lips against the base of Jack's throat and then proceeded to work his way up to his jaw line.

"Cry all you want, cariad, but don't forget. It's over. You're free and you're safe. You've got your life back."

"I know," Jack whispered, and he sounded almost disbelieving. "Thanks to you. I know others helped, but its mostly thanks to you. It's not over, though."

Ianto pulled back a little, suspicion in his eyes.

"You haven't remembered something else, have you?"

Jack laughed softly.

"No, there's nothing else that I know of. No, I was just thinking. Canary Wharf was destroyed, but Torchwood is still there. Cardiff... Glasgow... If someone doesn't step in and take charge, it could be that it'll just end up in some other power-mad person's hands. Or just as bad, UNIT might take control. I can't let that happen. I can't let Torchwood hurt anyone else like it hurt us."

"It sounds like you have a plan."

"Not so much my plan," Jack admitted. "I remember hearing the Doctor talking to Queen Elizabeth..." He paused and grimaced at the memories of that visit. "Damn, that was embarrassing. I fell over and bawled like a baby in front of the Queen."

Ianto chuckled.

"Not to mention you also fell asleep on my shoulder in front of her. I wouldn't worry, though. She was utterly charmed by you, and I think that was what the Doctor was hoping to achieve."

"Cunning bastard. I'll have to watch myself, won't I? Between you and him, you have enough blackmail material to last all the way into the thirtieth century."

"Jack, tangents."

"Right. Sorry."

Ianto shifted a little and pulled Jack closer to him. Jack willingly allowed himself to be manoeuvred, and snuggled contentedly against the Welshman.

"This is something that's different," he mused. "Never used to do the cuddling thing. Guess I was too busy conning people. My best trick was always to just fuck them senseless, and then take off while they were still recovering."

Ianto had to bite his tongue to keep from asking if that was what he tried to do with the Doctor when they first met. Jack went on, oblivious to Ianto's discomforting train of thought.

"I never wanted to get close like this to anyone. You knocked my world right out of kilter, Ianto. I can say the words again, and really mean them. I love you."

"I'd tell you you're a soppy git again, but then I'd be equally guilty. I love you, too, but you're going off on tangents again. You were talking about what you heard when the Queen and the Doctor were talking... Hold on! I thought you were asleep!"

Jack smiled sheepishly.

"I was, mostly. But you know when sometimes you're not quite asleep, and you can still hear what's going on around you? I learnt to sleep like that when I was a prisoner. You know, so I didn't get caught off-guard. Even when I was in that room, with the time-lock in place, they'd still find ways to... you know."

"I know," Ianto murmured. "I'm sorry. All right, then. What did you overhear?"

"The Queen told the Doctor that she wants me to take over Torchwood."

Ianto was silent. Yes, he'd heard that as well, and he still wasn't sure what he thought about it. He could see the Queen's point of view, of course. The concept of Torchwood was good. It was just that the actual execution of the idea had gone horribly awry because of a few unfortunate misconceptions. In the right hands, Torchwood could do a great deal of good and help to pave the way for Earth's future. As the Queen had said, who better to take the reins than Jack? He didn't voice that opinion, though. Jack deserved to be able to make a choice on his own, without outside influence.

"What do you want to do?" Ianto asked, keeping his question as neutral as he could.

"I don't know," Jack said. "I guess I'd have to know how it would work. I mean, I don't think I could ever go back to Torchwood in London."

"Cariad, that place was destroyed. No one will ever work there again. And besides, I would never make you go back there."

"And that's the other thing," Jack said. "I could never do it without you."

Ianto sighed a little. He was equally touched and concerned by Jack's reliance on him.

"One day, Jack, I'll be gone and you're going to have to move on without me."

Jack mumbled something incoherently into Ianto's shoulder.

"What was that?" Ianto asked bemusedly. Jack lifted his head a little, and Ianto got a glimpse of a familiar, petulant expression.

"Said, I don't wanna."

Laughter bubbled up inside Ianto's throat, and he nearly gagged.

"Yes, well, childish refusals to accept reality won't make it any less true. Still, that's in the future. We're talking about the here and now. Are you trying to say that you'd be willing to run Torchwood as long as it's not in London, and as long as I'm with you?"

Jack considered that for a moment before nodding.

"Yes. I know you said you'd stay with me, but I wouldn't blame you if you didn't want to go back to Torchwood."

"Let's not pre-empt each other, Jack. Truth is that I would have thought that you would have wanted to be as far away from Torchwood as possible. I actually, thought..."

Jack tilted his head to peer up at Ianto.

"What?"

"I thought that you would have wanted to go home, once you got your faculties back."

"I am home," Jack protested with a confused frown. Ianto shook his head.

"No. I mean back to where you came from. You know... from the future?"

"Oh," Jack murmured. "No. I don't have a home there anymore. I don't belong there, and if I ever went back to the fifty-first century... that's where I'm from... If I ever went back, I'd find myself in a whole lot of trouble. I used to work for the Time Agency. We were supposed to be like police... making sure that no one messed with the vortex, or time lines. Stopping paradoxes from being created, and that kind of thing. Only trouble was, the Agency was as corrupt as Torchwood. Agents were only in it for what they could get for themselves. We didn't care, not really. And yeah, I was a willing part of it. Oh, my intentions were good when I joined, but it didn't take long for my intentions to take a nose dive." Jack paused and sighed softly. "I'd rather not talk about all that right now. Just... something happened. I don't know what. I saw something, did something, said something... I don't remember. All I know is that I woke up one morning to find they'd wiped two years of my life from my memory."

"Two years?" Ianto echoed in shock. "And you really have no idea why?"

"None, and I decided I wasn't going to hang around waiting for them to do even worse. I ran, and went rogue. Last I heard was that I had a pretty little price on my head. So no, I can't go home and frankly, I wouldn't want to. As far as I'm concerned, my home is wherever you are."

"Are you certain you were never this soppy?"

"Not without it being a con," Jack admitted honestly. "But this isn't a con, and I don't have any reason to lie to you. You've given me something that I haven't had since before my dad was killed, something that not even Rose and the Doctor were willing to give. You gave me love, with no strings attached. I'm not afraid to say that I love you, and really mean it. You do believe me, don't you?"

"I believe you," Ianto assured him. "As for us taking over Torchwood, why don't we just take that one step at a time? Maybe, in a couple of days, we can talk to the Doctor and ask him to take us to present day Cardiff, and we can take a look at the facility there. We have to know whether you can handle going back in there, Jack."

"I know," Jack conceded. "Can't say I'll be looking forward to it, but I know you're right."

"Okay, then," Ianto murmured. "And in the mean time..."

He trailed off, and looked down in amusement as he felt Jack's skilled fingers alight on his knee and begin to creep up along the inside of his thigh. A glance upwards told him all he needed to know when he saw the lustful expression on Jack's face.

"You should be having a rest," Ianto admonished him lightly, but it ended in a gasp as Jack's hand reached his groin and stroked his cock through the material of his trousers.

"You're still wearing that sexy outfit," Jack purred. "Do you have any idea how hot you look right now, with your face all flushed?"

Ianto licked his lips, unable to take his eyes off Jack's hand.

"I think I can probably guess. But Jack... I'm not so sure that doing this in your bed is such a great idea."

"Don't you mean _our_ bed?" Jack asked. Ianto gaped as he realised that the single bed had vanished right out from beneath them, to be replaced by the king-sized bed that that they had slept in together the night before.

"I swear this ship is plotting against me," Ianto grumbled as Jack shifted and straddled him. Jack grinned.

"I prefer to think of it as plotting _for_ us. She loves us both, Yan. It makes her happy to see us together."

Ianto reached a hand up to gently cup Jack's cheek. No words came, and nor did they seem necessary. The loving smile that graced Jack's face told Ianto that Jack knew exactly what he was thinking.

This time, as Jack leaned down to claim Ianto's mouth in a lingering kiss, Ianto surrendered himself without a second thought.

* * *

_to be continued...._


	42. The Pathway Forward

The TARDIS landed in Cardiff with a shudder that did nothing to ease the nerves that were churning up Jack's stomach. He knew that he didn't look terribly good, either, from the way that Ianto, Rose and the Doctor had been watching him from the moment he entered the control room.

Truth was that he wanted nothing more than to run and hide. He wanted to make a dash to his room, grab his dog and blanket and hide away from the reality that was awaiting him outside the TARDIS doors.

A hand grasped his, and he looked to see Ianto beside him, smiling reassuringly.

"Together," Ianto reminded him gently. Jack let his breath out in a soft hiss.

"Okay. I'm ready."

He wasn't, not really, and they all knew it. No one was arguing with him, though. Instead, the Doctor threw open the doors and led the way out into the Cardiff sunshine.

"Hello again, Brigadier," the Doctor greeted his old friend as they emerged onto the Plass. The Brigadier nodded in reply.

"Doctor."

"Got the front door key, then, have you?"

The Brigadier snorted. "Yes, though I don't know why you need it with that sonic screwdriver of yours." He paused, and smiled wryly. "Then again, I must say I got quite a kick out of General Stewart's reaction when he had to hand it over. Especially when he found out why." His gaze swept over the small group, and finally came to land on Jack. "It's good to see you fit and well, lad."

"Thankyou," Jack answered sincerely. "Thankyou for everything you did. I'll never forget it."

The Brigadier accepted Jack's offered hand without hesitation, and clasped it firmly.

"Anything to put a stick up the current hierarchy, infantile twits that they are. Well done with Her Majesty, too, I might add. She issued a directive within hours of your meeting her that both yourself and young Mr Jones here are under the protection of the Crown. I was at a meeting of UNIT Chiefs when it came through. The response was colourful to say the least."

"It shouldn't have been necessary," the Doctor said tersely. "It should have been enough that they knew Jack and Ianto are under _my_ protection."

"With all due respect, Doctor, this is a new generation. They haven't worked with you in the same capacity as UNIT did back in my day. They simply don't have the same degree of respect for you. You did the right thing by taking these lads to meet with Her Majesty, believe me."

The Doctor nodded, though he seemed less than appeased.

"All right. Lead the way, Brigadier."

* * *

"Keep in mind, no one has been inside this place for years. Not since just after New Year of Two Thousand. UNIT only obtained the keys in the aftermath of Canary Wharf, and as far as I'm aware, none of the bigwigs had gotten around to paying the place a visit. I can't guarantee what state it's in, or how much of the equipment is still intact. For all we know, the London mob might have cleaned it out."

"Not all of it, they didn't," Ianto said quietly. "I started working at Torchwood as a junior researcher in Standard Archives just after the Cardiff office was locked down. I recall hearing someone say that Hartman didn't want to clear it out completely, because she planned on installing a new team here eventually."

"Can't say I'm sorry she never got around to it," the Brigadier retorted. "I think we all know full well that she was interested in was whatever fell through the rift."

"Sorry, the what?" Ianto asked, puzzled.

"A rift in time and space," Jack explained. "It runs through Cardiff like a fault line, and things tend to slip through."

"You mean aliens," Ianto interpreted. Jack shrugged.

"Aliens. Technology. Cold war era toaster ovens."

Ianto rolled his eyes.

"Wonderful. We can retro-furnish our house."

Jack's grin just about lit up the dull Cardiff day.

"I love fifties era beds. The sixties were pretty good, too. Revolving mattresses and mirror ceilings..."

Ianto eyed him with mock exasperation.

"Did you learn anything practical at this Time Agency of yours?"

Jack looked scandalised, which had Ianto struggling not to laugh.

"That is practical! You'd be amazed at the positions you can get into when you can see yourself..."

"Yes, thankyou, Jack," the Doctor interrupted dryly. "Brigadier, if you please...?"

Barely able to contain a smirk, the Brigadier let them into a mock-up o a tourist office that looked and smelt like it hadn't been aired out since before World War I.

"Forget the aliens," Rose coughed. "This is death by dust mites!"

"Sorry," the Brigadier apologised. "But I did warn you." He leaned behind the counter and pressed a hidden button that caused a false wall to slide back and reveal a dank looking tunnel.

"Miss Tyler?" he asked, offering her his arm but the Doctor, however, hung back with Jack and Ianto. He and Ianto both eyed Jack with concern, noting that the immortal was distinctly pale.

"Jack, you don't have to go in," the Doctor told him gently. "If you aren't ready, just say so and we can go back to the TARDIS."

"No," Jack answered. "I'm okay. I am. I just... I'm scared," he admitted in a small voice. "I mean, I know it's not going to happen, but a part of me can't help thinking that I'll be trapped all over again if I go in there. It's stupid, I know."

"No, it's not," Ianto assured him. "It's a reasonable reaction. But tell me, Jack. Do you trust us? Me, the Doctor, Rose and the Brigadier?"

"Yes," Jack answered without hesitation. Ianto grasped his hand in a firm grip.

"Then trust us now to keep you safe. And remember, we're only going to look. You can say enough at any time. We are not going to force you to do anything you don't want to do."

"Thankyou," Jack murmured. "I guess I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

"All right, then," the Doctor said. "Let's go and have a look, shall we?"

* * *

It took effort for Ianto to contain his reaction to the interior of the Cardiff base. Even with his own antipathy towards Torchwood, he couldn't help but be impressed by the place. A brief glance told him that both Rose and the Brigadier both felt the same. Jack and the Doctor, however, wore equally stony expressions.

"According to the plans," the Brigadier said, "this is the main body of the place. It goes down several levels. You have the armoury and target range, an extensive archives and then about four levels of holding cells. There's a seventh level on the plans, but we don't know what's down there. We should probably go and take a look."

"No need," the Doctor said quietly. "We know what's there."

The Brigadier looked from the Doctor to Ianto, and then to Jack. He took in the look on their faces, and nodded decisively.

"Right. Perhaps you'd like to just have a bit of a look around at your leisure? I would recommend, though, that no one touch anything. That includes you, Doctor."

Indignation flooded the Doctor's face, and Rose giggled and hugged him.

"Don't look so insulted. You know he's right. Now, c'mon. I want to have a look around."

She dragged him away, and the Brigadier followed, all the while muttering under his breath about Time Lords who can't keep their hands to themselves.

"You're not okay at all, are you?" Ianto asked Jack quietly once the others were out of earshot.

"I don't want to be here," Jack confessed in a heavily subdued voice, "but I _need_ to be here. I think I can cope as long as you stay with me."

"Always," Ianto promised, taking his hand without hesitation when Jack reached for him. "But cariad, do you think you'll be able to cope with working here? Because if just being here now, to look around, is causing you distress, then maybe..."

"Two things," Jack interrupted. "If you promise me two things, I think I can deal with working here."

"What two things? Tell me."

"First, that I won't have to live here, and second, that I'll never have to go down to that level where they... You know..."

"Where you were held?" Ianto asked solemnly, and Jack nodded.

"Yeah. I can't go back down there. Not ever."

"I promise you won't have to," Ianto reassured him. "If need be, we'll seal that level off entirely. As for living here, not a chance. We're going to get a flat, at the very least, and it can be on the other side of Cardiff, if needs be. We are _not_ living here."

The hope that shone on Jack's face was beautiful to see.

"You really want to live with me?"

Ianto was bemused, to say the least.

"That is what couples do, isn't it? Live together? That is what we are? A couple..."

Suddenly, unexpectedly, it was Ianto's turn to feel uncertain as it occurred to him that perhaps Jack didn't want to put a label of any sort on their relationship, fledgling though it was. His doubts were quickly washed away, though, when Jack hugged him and kissed him lingeringly on the mouth.

"Never used to like labels," Jack murmured against Ianto's lips. "But I like that. Us, as a couple. It feels nice."

"You know I'm strictly a one man bloke, right?" Ianto asked teasingly. Jack answered with a playful leer.

"So, you're saying I can share you with other women, but not other men?"

Ianto slapped him lightly on the arm, and Jack erupted into a fit of giggles.

"You're incorrigible, Jack. C'mon, let's have a look around."

Notably calmer, Jack followed Ianto around the body of the Hub, examining what had been left behind by Torchwood London. Much of it was in pieces – cannibalised by whoever had been sent by Yvonne Hartman to clean up the mess left behind by Alex Hopkins.

Gradually, Jack found himself drawn to what appeared to be an office. Ianto followed, and watched with curiosity and concern as Jack stood tensely just inside the door.

"This is where they made their offer," Jack said. He spat the words out like they were poison. "I refused. Didn't want anything to do with them after seeing how they operated. My mistake, though, was that I didn't take their threats seriously. I should have gotten out of Cardiff as fast as I could, instead of going and getting drunk again. My liberty was at their discretion, they said. I ignored them. I never thought for a second that they'd get the better of me twice." He walked around the desk and sat down gingerly in the chair behind the desk. "I never imagined that one day I'd be the one sitting here."

"It's yours if you want it, Jack," Ianto told him quietly. "You only have to say yes. On the other hand, if you don't want it, then I'm sure the Doctor will take us wherever we want to go. It's your choice, and you don't have to do anything you don't want to do."

Jack regarded Ianto with a heartfelt smile.

"There's that word again. Us." He held out a hand and Ianto took it, allowing himself to be pulled down onto Jack's lap. "We'd have to redecorate. I can't work in here with it looking like this."

Ianto smirked.

"Naturally. What else are you thinking?"

"It's got to be just you and me. I won't have anyone else here. Not from UNIT, or any of the local law enforcements agencies. The police are all too damned..."

"Don't you dare say bleeding hearts," Ianto warned him lightly, "because that's what I was accused of being for wanting to help you."

Jack huffed.

"I was going to say nosy, but there is that. Ianto, the rift is unpredictable, and there may be times when we have to make some hard choices. Life and death choices. I don't need some whiny little thing telling me I'm wrong." Bitterness flickered over his face at a thousand bad memories. "Had enough of that to last hundred of lifetimes."

Ianto kissed him softly, chasing away some of the shadows in his lover's eyes.

"Can't say that I agree to the 'only us' mantra, but all right. For now, at least, we'll keep it to ourselves. Just promise me, Jack, that you'll at least consider others for recruitment if it gets to be too much for us to handle on our own."

"Okay," Jack murmured. He buried his face in Ianto's shoulder. "I love you, Yan. Thankyou for not leaving me."

Ianto withheld a sigh. He could hear the unspoke plea for reassurance as clearly as a clap of thunder.

"I love you, too, Jack. And I promise to stay with you for as long as I can."

* * *

In the end, it was decided that Jack and Ianto would take control of Torchwood in a month's time. It would coincide with the post-Canary Wharf conference in London which Jack and Ianto would attend, with the Doctor there as well for support. It would be the first real test of Jack's new authority, as the newly appointed Director of Torchwood. Then, they would return to Cardiff and start to prepare the Hub for occupancy once more.

In the meantime, Jack had made two specific requests. Firstly, that the Doctor take them all somewhere that they could relax for at least two weeks, with absolutely no threat of running for their lives. Secondly, Jack asked rather shyly to visit Ianto's parents again.

The first was enthusiastically agreed to by all. The second caused Ianto some reservations, but he agreed to it nonetheless. He, too, wanted to see his parents now that they knew there was no longer any threat of an ambush hanging over their heads. Plus, he wanted his parents to see Jack the adult, as opposed to Jack the child.

And so here they were, walking side by side up the path to the front door of Meredith and Alwyn Jones' home. They'd not quite gotten there before the door opened and Meredith rushed out. Neither man had a chance to speak before she engulfed first Ianto and then Jack in a ferocious hug.

"You're all right! You're both all right, thank the Lord!"

"Yes, Mam, we're fine," Ianto reassured her. "Everything's fine now."

"We thought the worst when all those soldiers showed up," she told them. "You weren't hurt, were you?"

Ianto and Jack exchanged glances, and then Jack spoke gently.

"It wasn't anything serious, Mrs Jones. Just cuts and bruises. We're both fine."

"Well, thank God for that," she huffed. "Why on earth are we standing around out here for? Come inside, boys."

She let them in, and then ushered them through into the kitchen.

"Now, I seem to remember promising someone some chocolate ice cream with topping and sprinkles when they were here last."

Jack couldn't keep his face from lighting up.

"Yes, please, Mrs Jones."

"Good. Have a seat, then. And what's this 'Mrs Jones' nonsense? Call me Mam."

"Mam, Jack's not the same as he was when we were last here," Ianto pointed out. She raised an eyebrow in his direction, effectively silencing her son with the simple gesture.

"Do you think I'm blind, Ianto? I can see the difference, but why should that stop him from being able to enjoy the pleasure of a bowl of ice cream?"

Ianto looked sheepish.

"Sorry. You're right."

"Of course I'm right. I'm your mother. Now, I'll get the ice cream, and then we'll talk."

"Where's Tad?" Ianto wondered.

"He went into town to pick up some gardening supplies. He should be back soon. Now tell me, are you both safe now?"

"Yes, Mam," Jack answered. "UNIT won't be a problem for us anymore."

Meredith regarded them both appraisingly.

"Ianto has chosen to stay with you, hasn't he?"

"While Ianto nearly choked, Jack just smiled.

"Yes, Mam. I love him, and I think he loves me."

She turned her gaze onto Ianto, who managed to regain a fraction of his composure and take Jack's hand in his.

"I do love him. Mam, I'm…"

She crossed the room so fast it made both their heads spin, and clapped a hand securely over Ianto's mouth.

"If you're about to apologise, Ianto Jones, then don't. Never apologise for loving someone. Do you hear me?"

Ianto nodded, abashed, and Meredith took her hand away from his mouth.

"Good. Just you both be sure to look after each other. That's all I'm asking."

"We will," Ianto promised. He felt Jack's hand close around his, and grasp it tightly in return. Meredith smiled warmly, placated.

"Well, that's all I want to hear."

A moment later, she set a large bowl of ice cream down in front of each of them.

"Mam, I don't want ice cream," Ianto said tentatively. "It gives me headaches."

"Nonsense. It only gave you headaches because you ate it too fast. For heaven's sake, Ianto, just enjoy the treat for once. You have plenty of time. I assume you don't need to be rushing off anywhere soon?"

"No, Jack confirmed around a mouthful of ice cream and topping. "The Doctor fixed my vortex manipulator. I can call him when we're ready to go back to the TARDIS."

"There we are, then. You have plenty of time."

Ianto sighed. He knew better than most that his mother was not one to be argued with. Jack, for his part, looked completely happy, though, and for that reason alone Ianto was willing to endure the inquisition that was his parents.

* * *

Nearly four hours later, they stood together in the designated place to wait for the Doctor. The visit, on the whole, had been a pleasant one, although the unexpected arrival of Ianto's sister and her family halfway through had threatened to send Ianto running for the hills.

He'd worried briefly at how Jack would cope – he was still clearly nervous in Alwyn's presence – but David and Mica had immediately taken to the immortal and he was soon herded out into the garden by the two youngsters to play games. The conversation that followed whilst Jack was occupied with the kids had Ianto squirming in his seat, and wish he had Jack's vortex manipulator to teleport himself out of there.

"So, when did you go bender, then?" Rhiannon demanded.

"Rhiannon!" Alwyn growled in warning. "Your brother is not a… you know!"

Rhiannon, however, laughed aloud.

"You can't even say it, can you, Tad?"

"The word's 'homosexual'," Johnny said, and nudged Ianto playfully with a grin. "Ain't that right, gay boy?"

Ianto grimaced, wishing he could sink into the seat, even though he knew there was no malice intended in Johnny's words.

"I am not gay," he insisted. "I don't like men in general. It's Jack… Just Jack. And I didn't fall for him right away. It was a gradual thing." He made deliberate eye contact with Meredith. "It was a slow burn."

Alwyn sighed somewhat melodramatically, oblivious to the look of understanding shared between mother and son.

"Can't say I'm especially thrilled, but it's your life to live, and God knows the two of you have been through enough without us making it harder for you. If this is the path you've chosen, then you've got your mother's and my support."

"Ours too, you silly git," Rhiannon assured him with an affectionate smile. She paused, looking out to where Jack was currently lying on the ground, playing the slumbering dragon while David and Mica clambered all over him. "It's a pity you won't be able to have kids. Look at him, he's brilliant with those two, and they never take to new people."

"They could always adopt," Meredith suggested innocently.

"Man!" Ianto protested. "We don't even have a place of our own, yet! And in all honesty, Jack is a big enough child himself without bringing the real thing into the mix."

"I thought you said he was better?" Alwyn asked with a frown.

"He is," Ianto said, "but he still has moments where he's more child than adult. It's not his fault, he just has a lot of issues and insecurities."

"Of course it's not his fault," Meredith stated. "We just want to be sure you know what it is that you're getting into here."

Ianto did laugh, then.

"That, Mam, is a question I stopped bothering to ask myself a long time ago."

* * *

"I like your family," Jack said quietly as they waited for the TARDIS to return. Ianto smiled.

"They like you, too, Jack. Even Tad, and that's saying something, given he knows we're a couple. Even Mica and David like you. You have the children's seal of approval."

Jack laughed softly.

"That's good to know. So… you don't mind?"

"Don't mind what, Jack?" Ianto asked distractedly. Where was the TARDIS? It was getting cold, and neither of them were dressed for a dramatic drop in temperature.

"Sharing them," Jack said. "With me, I mean. You don't mind sharing your family with me?"

Ianto looked around at him, suddenly hearing the renewed uncertainty. Yes, he knew about Jack's father and brother, and about the way his mother had virtually disowned him. He knew that Jack was quite likely substituting the Jones clan for the family he'd lost so tragically.

Turning to face him, Ianto laid his hands on Jack's shoulders and smiled warmly.

"No, Jack. I don't mind sharing them with you at all, and I know they'd be very happy for you to think of them as your family. Hell, Mam has practically adopted you already. You're a part of my family, just the same as Johnny."

Jack raised an eyebrow, and amusement lit up his face.

"Does that make me the husband?"

Ianto saw immediately where he was headed with that, and thumped him lightly on the arm.

"Don't even think about going there, Jack Harkness! I am not the wife!"

Jack snorted.

"Well, I know it's not me. I'd make a terrible wife. I hate housework."

Ianto chuckled, amused at the strange turn their conversation had taken.

"I promise you, when we find somewhere to live, we _will_ be sharing the housework."

"Just don't make me iron. I don't do ironing."

Ianto rolled his eyes.

"Fine. No ironing." He paused, frowning as something else occurred to him. "We'll have to find out about money. I wasn't exactly on a huge salary with Torchwood, and I don't have much in the way of savings."

"The Doctor will take care of that," Jack said confidently. "We don't have to worry about it."

"I hope you're right," Ianto murmured.

* * *

Later that evening, Ianto waited until Jack was in the bath before going to find the Doctor and ask him about the money issue.

"You have nothing to worry about, Ianto," the Doctor assured him, echoing Jack's earlier sentiment. "Your new salary as second in command of Torchwood will be quite substantial, and so will Jack's. Not to mention, an account has been set up for each of you so you can receive your compensation payments."

Ianto stared at him, confused.

"What compensation? What are you talking about?"

"Well, for you, compensation for the treatment you received because of Yvonne Hartman, and for what you went through at Canary Wharf. For Jack… Well, where do you start to compensate someone for one hundred and six years of captivity and suffering?"

"You can't," Ianto said bitterly. "Nothing can ever make up for what happened to him."

"Not, it can't, but Her Majesty has determined that he'll never want for anything again, for as long as her family reigns."

Ianto resisted the urge to make a sarcastic remark.

"That's very generous of her."

"She acknowledges that she failed Jack before, and she's determined that it won't happen again. She wants you both to have everything you need, regardless of whether you take over Torchwood or not. If Jack had refused, she still would have set up a wage for each of you; yours to be paid until your death, Ianto, and Jack's to be paid in perpetuus. She considers it to be the least she can do."

Ianto swallowed. It wasn't easy to do around the lump in his throat.

"Well, tell her thankyou. It is appreciated."

"Oh, you can tell her yourself when you next see her. She'll be wanting to see you both again, I guarantee it. And trust me, if she hadn't made financial arrangements for you, I guarantee that I would have. I'm going to be looking out for you both, Ianto, and I promise you now that I'll come whenever you need me. You only need to call."

"Thankyou," Ianto said sincerely. "I really do appreciate that, Doctor, and I know Jack will, too. I know he still has some insecurities about being abandoned. It's likely that he always will, I suppose, but I think he's slowly coming to accept that he won't be abandoned again by us. Not on purpose."

"And what about you, Ianto? Are you happy with this outcome?"

A smile quirked Ianto's lips.

"I think I am. I can't say this is how I imagined my future, but it's all right. I get to be with someone I love, and who I know loves me, and I'll be doing something important. If I have any regrets, I guess it's probably that I know I'll only be with Jack for a short time. I'm really just a blip in time to him and I'll be lucky if he remembers me in a hundred years' time, let alone a thousand."

"Oh, Ianto, I think you're sorely underestimating our Jack. You saved him, and you loved him when everyone else… me included… turned their backs on him. He will never forget you, Ianto Jones."

"Thankyou," Ianto whispered again. "I just… I wish…"

"What?" the Doctor pressed.

"Well… I just wish there was a way I could stay with him for longer. I mean, my life is going to be so short, compared to him. If I'm lucky I'll live until I'm eighty or ninety… or maybe even one hundred, though that's rather unlikely. You say he'll never forget me, but my life still only constitutes a brief moment for him. I just don't want him to be alone. You know that's his worst fear, don't you? Being alone?"

The Doctor regarded Ianto thoughtfully.

"What would you do about that, Ianto? If you had the chance, how would you change it?"

Ianto shrugged.

"Easy. Take the vortex out of Jack, or whatever it is that's keeping him going, and give him a chance to live a normal life."

"But then you'd run the risk of losing _him_, eventually."

"I'd have to take that chance, wouldn't I?" Ianto said. "But wouldn't it be worth it, to have the chance to grow old with someone you love? Right now, the only option open to Jack, aside from being alone, is to watch those he loves grow old around him while he stays the same. It really isn't any option at all, is it?"

"You are an extraordinary young man, Ianto Jones. Most people would ask for immortality for themselves if they had that question put to them."

Ianto shook his head grimly.

"No, I wouldn't ask for that. I want to be with Jack for as long as possible, but the thought of living forever just plain scares me. Doctor, is there really nothing you can do to help him?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow.

"You mean, to _fix_ him?"

The simple turn of phrase drew a look of visible ire from Ianto.

"He doesn't need fixing! He's not wrong, not a freak, not a monster. Needing help is not the same as needing to be fixed."

"Sorry," the Doctor apologised quickly, holding up his hands defensively. "I didn't mean it like that. Look, Ianto, I wish there was a way to take the vortex out of him. I'd never want to condemn anyone to the fate Jack is facing. Not even my worst enemies. The problem is that I wasn't the one who made him immortal. It was Rose."

"By opening the heart of the TARDIS," Ianto murmured, recalling the stilted story that Rose had told him. The Doctor nodded.

"Through absorbing the power of the vortex. Firstly, I would never allow her to do that again. I had to take it out of her the first time, and that's what caused me to regenerate. That power destroyed my ninth regeneration. Secondly, there's no guarantee that it would even work. The TARDIS had a big part in making Jack the way he is now. Rose wished him back to life, but the TARDIS gave her the power to do it, and the TARDIS was the one who pushed her to go that one step further and give him forever. If Rose… or even if _I _took in that power now, there's no telling what might happen. Yes, it might result in Jack becoming a normal human being again, but it could just as easily go the opposite way. You might very well find yourself immortal right alongside Jack."

Tears threatened in Ianto's eyes.

"I don't want to leave him alone, but I don't want to live forever, either. Why does it feel like a betrayal to think that?"

"It's not," the Doctor assured him. "And believe me, as much as I know Jack doesn't want to lose you, he wouldn't wish forever on you, either. He loves you too much for that."

"Do you believe there was a purpose to it?" Ianto wondered. "Some greater meaning to his immortality that we don't know about yet?"

"I honestly don't know," the Doctor admitted. "I would love to say yes, but I just don't know."

A somewhat melancholy smile touched Ianto's lips.

"Well, in that respect, I suppose you're not so different from us lowly humans after all, are you?"

* * *

_  
to be continued..._


	43. Epilogue: Where He Belongs

_Cardiff  
Three weeks later_

"I like this one."

Ianto couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Jack's declaration. It was the fourth house they'd looked at just on that day alone. He'd lost count altogether of the total number of houses, flats and apartments that had been looked at and summarily rejected by Jack, and he wasn't entirely sure what was so special or different about this one that warranted Jack's immediate approval.

"Any particular reason why?"

To the bemusement of both Ianto and the more than slightly harried realtor, Jack grabbed Ianto's hand and hauled him into the centre of the living room.

"There!"

Ianto looked up in the direction Jack was pointing in, but drew a blank. All he saw was the skylight, and the Cardiff-typical cloud-covered sky beyond.

"What, Jack? What am I looking at?"

"Up there!" Jack said, with just a hint of frustration in his voice now. "It's the sky!"

If Ianto hadn't known any better, he would have thought Jack had regressed again. As it was, he had to take a calming breath before trying again.

"It's a skylight, Jack. It's hardly something to base the purchase of a house on."

"Yan, I can see the sky!" Jack persisted. "At night, I'll be able to see the stars."

And suddenly, Ianto understood. Jack had been chosen to stay on Earth, but his heart remained in the stars. The skylight was special to him in that it allowed him to continue to feel connected to the universe.

He looked around wryly. The house only had two bedrooms, one bathroom, an inadequately sized kitchen that was definitely going to need renovating, and it was right on the border of a questionable part of town. Then, he looked at Jack's hopeful gaze, and any resolve he still had melted. The house might not be ideal, but with some effort it could be a home. And really, how many homes were perfect anyway?"

"I think we'll take this one," he told the agent, and couldn't help but laugh at Jack's delighted whoop.

Yes, it was definitely the right choice.

* * *

"How long before we can move in again?" Jack asked as they lay sated in their bed in the TARDIS that night. Ianto rolled his eyes. It was not the first, or even the second, third or fourth time that Jack had asked that very question.

"For the seventh time, Jack, settlement will take place in thirty days. We can move in after that, which is just as well, because we have no furniture yet."

Jack's face lit up at that prospect.

"We can go shopping together! We can go to all the furniture shops, and try out all of the beds…"

Ianto shot Jack a warning look.

"I hope you don't mean that literally."

"Spoilsport," Jack huffed.

"Goose," Ianto shot back affectionately. "As long as it only involves lying on the beds to see how they feel, then yes. We can try them out. But if you mean what I think you mean…"

"Relax, Ianto. I do have a sense of propriety. I even use it sometimes, too."

Ianto snorted, remembering with amusement and affection Jack marching proud and naked to his bath, one day not so long ago within the confines of Torchwood One.

"That remains to be seen, doesn't it?"

Jack pouted, but the sparkle in his eyes suggested he wasn't as insulted as he made out to be.

"We'll get everything we need and want," Jack said finally as he snuggled in against Ianto. "And it's going to be great. You'll see. We're going to have a home. You and me, together."

Ianto kissed Jack affectionately on the top of his head.

"I know, cariad. I know."

* * *

"Are you ready for this?"

Jack's jaw clenched, and Ianto knew instantly that it was the wrong thing to ask. He didn't try to apologise or take it back, though, knowing that doing so would only aggravate Jack even more.

"Honestly?" Jack growled. "No, I'm not, but I don't exactly have a choice here. Damn it, Yan, this tie is choking me! Why do I have to wear it? You said after the Queen that you'd never make me wear one again! And this jacket…"

Ianto stared at Jack critically. He had to concede, Jack looked painfully uncomfortable in the suit jacket and tie, and if he was completely honest with himself, it really didn't look right. The tie looked just plain wrong against the shirt and braces Jack had chosen, and Ianto had to admit it was offending his sensibilities.

"We could give you a bowtie instead," Ianto suggested with a wry grin that quickly faded when Jack glared at him.

"Not funny, Yan. Look, I'm sorry. I'm taking it off. The jacket, too. They just don't feel right, and I don't want to walk into that meeting feeling uncomfortable and self-conscious because of what I'm wearing. I'll be self-conscious enough as it is."

"I understand," Ianto assured him. He did, too. Comfort aided confidence, and if Jack was fidgeting with his clothing, then it would give everyone an immediate advantage over him. "Just please, promise me you're not going to wear that leather jacket?"

Jack's laughter echoed as he disappeared in amongst the multitude of clothing racks that filled the TARDIS' wardrobe room.

"Oh, ye of little faith…"

Ianto grinned to himself, and didn't bother to dispute that. The truth was, he had a tremendous amount of faith in Jack, and it got stronger every day. Oh, he knew there would be fights and difficult times. It didn't help that Jack had retained some less than attractive facets of his childish persona, and had a tendency to sulk fiercely if he didn't get what he wanted.

Ianto loved him, though, and he was no longer afraid to admit it to Jack, himself or anyone else, for that matter.

Jack's own love and devotion was unwavering, and Ianto occasionally felt overwhelmed by the magnitude of it. He wondered briefly whether it might diminish over time, but then he'd catch Jack out staring at him with an expression that could only be described as pure love, and he knew in his heart that he had Jack's love forever.

It was a comforting thought.

"Well? What do you think?"

Ianto blinked in surprise, realising that Jack had re-emerged without him realising it. A moment later, his breath caught as he took in Jack's appearance. He looked like he'd stepped out of the history books themselves. Gone was the tie and jacket. Now, Jack stood before him in authentic 1940's clothing, complete with a waistcoat, fob watch and chain, and the look was capped off by a military greatcoat that looked just right on him.

It was an ensemble that Ianto would never have chosen himself, but one that Jack looked perfect in.

"Is it okay?" Jack asked anxiously when Ianto didn't speak. "I'll change if it isn't. It's just, it feels right…"

"Don't," Ianto burst out abruptly. "Don't change. You look perfect, Jack. Absolutely perfect."

Hope lit up Jack's face.

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Trust me, cariad. It's perfect."

Jack turned to a nearby mirror to check his reflection.

"I just don't want to walk in there and have to put up with them laughing at me."

"If you walk in there standing tall with your head held high, I promise they won't laugh at you."

"Yeah," Jack retorted. "With any luck, they'll be too busy choking."

Ianto smirked in response as Rose entered, eyeing them both appreciatively.

"Looking as gorgeous as ever. Mm, and that suit really shows off your bum," she told Ianto with a wicked grin, causing him to blush fiercely. When she turned to Jack, though, her smile faded to something more melancholy. "Now _there's_ the Jack Harkness I remember."

Jack's own smile matched hers as he put an arm around Ianto's waist in a visible declaration of their partnership.

"Only to look at, Rosie. I'll never be the same as I used to be."

"That's not necessarily a bad thing, is it?" she asked. Despite her best efforts, her voice trembled and tears blurred her eyes. Leaving Ianto's side, Jack gathered her into his arms and hugged her close.

"It's okay. It really is. You made me a better person, Rose. Don't ever be sorry for that. And if you hadn't done what you did, I would've died on that satellite, and I never would've met Ianto. I'll always be grateful for that."

He cupped her cheek tenderly and tilted her head up to kiss her softly on the lips.

"I meant what I said. You're worth fighting for."

"Do you really have to go?" she asked. "You could stay in the TARDIS. You and Ianto both!"

"Yeah, we could," Jack conceded, "but could and should are two different things. You know that. Besides, this is kind of my way of having revenge. They all wanted to lock me up, Torchwood _and_ UNIT. Now, not only do they have to leave me alone, but I'm in a position where I can order them around, if I want."

"Just as long as you don't let that go to your head, Captain," the Doctor said in a gentle warning tone as he joined them. Jack regarded the Doctor with a serious gaze.

"I won't, Doctor. You're giving me a big responsibility. I won't let you down, I promise."

The Doctor looked briefly taken aback. Then he sighed and drew Jack into a fierce hug.

"My Jack, you don't have anything to prove to me. You've already proven yourself so many times over. I trust you, Jack. I know you'll do the right thing, and I am already so very proud of you."

At the Doctor's words, the tension fell away from Jack's face, and he returned the hug with enthusiasm.

"I love you, Doctor."

The Doctor looked momentarily lost for words, much to the amusement of Ianto and Rose. Then, he relaxed as it sank in that Jack's declaration was not exactly in the same league as his declaration of love for Ianto. Rather, it was more on a par with his affection for Rose and Gage. Smiling, the Doctor kissed Jack tenderly on the forehead.

"I love you, too, Jack. I always will."

* * *

_UNIT Headquarters  
London_

"This is bloody ridiculous," General Fischer snarled, and not for the first time. "Torchwood should have been decommissioned after the Canary Wharf disaster. It's ludicrous that we have to continue to pander to it. Her Majesty had no business giving control of it to someone else!"

"Watch your mouth, Fischer," the Brigadier warned him coldly. "Men have been tried for treason for saying less than that."

Fischer just glared at him.

"Torchwood should be shut down, and we should be focusing our efforts on tracking the Doctor and securing the creature that he took from the ruins of Canary Wharf."

"That _creature_ was a man, Fischer," the Brigadier snapped. "A man who was so badly abused by Torchwood that he couldn't even remember his own identity."

General Mogambi snorted derisively.

"It can hardly be called a man, Brigadier. No man is capable of what _it_ can do."

"It's unnatural and needs to be contained," Fischer stated categorically.

"And now _you_ sound like Torchwood," the Brigadier said flatly. Fischer, however, was unapologetic.

"Well, you have to admit that some of their ideas were right. Still, I suppose we're just going to have to work with this new chap… at least until we manage to get him under the thumb, if you know what I mean."

A smattering of laughter swept over the group, but most of the Chiefs merely looked disdainful at Fischer's words. The Brigadier chuckled, albeit for markedly different reasons. The doors opened finally, and a deathly silence fell as four men walked into the room. Jack stood at the forefront, with Ianto on his immediate right. The Doctor stood to Jack's left, and on his other side was the Prime Minister. From the looks on the faces of the UNIT Chiefs, it was painfully obvious that they all knew who Jack was. Predictably, Fischer was the first to voice his disbelief.

"What is this? What's going on?"

"I am guessing that the good Doctor has finally come to his senses," Mogambi said, "and agreed to hand over the Torchwood freak to UNIT."

The Doctor and Ianto both glowered with fury at that, whilst Jack remained admirably passive. The Prime Minister, however, was more than happy to elaborate for them.

"Then you'd be guessing wrong, General Mogambi. Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to introduce Captain Jack Harkness, Her Majesty's personal appointment as the new Director of Torchwood."

For the most part, there was stunned silence. Then, Fischer and his few supporters began to protest loudly and angrily. Through it all, Jack, Ianto and the Doctor uttered not a sound. Gradually, though, a new sound became audible – the distinct sound of delighted laughter.

Silence fell over the room as everyone's attention turned to the Brigadier. The normally staid and somewhat humourless man was roaring with laughter.

"You should all see your face!" he laughed. "Every one of you, and especially you, Fischer! So damned full of yourself and your own importance, you've always looked down on anyone who didn't fit neatly into your compartmentalised opinion of what constitutes being human, and now… Oh, this is just too good!"

Fischer stood up and advanced on the newcomers, glaring as though he could frighten them off by intimidation.

"This is outrageous, Prime Minister. You can't seriously expect us to accept this! Even if we were to accept that Torchwood will continue to function, how can Her Majesty possibly place this… this freak in charge?"

"Use that word again, or any like it, and I won't even attempt to stop either the Doctor or Mr Jones from responding on Captain Harkness's behalf," the Prime Minister warned Fischer. "And believe me, it will be more than just a verbal response. Now, I don't care whether you like it or not. Neither does her Majesty. This decision is irrefutable, and the Queen is the only one who can reverse it. Captain Harkness is taking control of Torchwood, and he and Mr Jones will be accorded the respect due to them. Anyone who can't accept it can leave, right now."

The Prime Minister's tone brooked no argument, and he glared a challenge at the men and women in the room. When the ultimatum was met with silence, Jack finally spoke in a tone that was subdued, but nevertheless exuded authority.

"You all know who I am. You know I spent the last hundred years as Torchwood's pet freak, to quote General Mogambi. Some of you may even have seen me at some point when I was still their prisoner, and I don't doubt you might have some trouble dissociating me from the monster that Torchwood liked to show off and experiment on. I'm a free man now, and I daresay I'm more qualified than any of you to run Torchwood. This is not about egos, though, and I'd rather not put you all off-side before I even start, because I'm sure there'll be times in the near future when we'll need to work together. The bottom line is, Cardiff has a dangerous rift that needs to be monitored, and I agreed to do it. You don't have to like it, but you'd better damn well accept it."

Again, silence reigned. Then, the UNIT Chief from the United States stood and approached Jack with his hand outstretched.

"I'm General Anderson, Captain Harkness. I'm sure I speak for my colleagues here when I say I'm glad you were rescued from Torchwood, and that I'll be looking forward to any opportunities there may be in the future to work together. You have the support of UNIT America, Captain. You and Mr Jones both."

"Anderson…" Fischer snarled angrily at the perceived break in ranks. It was too late, though, and Anderson's response had opened the floodgates. One by one, the UNIT Chiefs left their seats and came forward to greet and welcome Jack, until only Fischer and Mogambi were left.

"Swallow your pride, lads," the Brigadier said with a wry smile. "Unless you're worried you might choke on it…?"

The two men looked at each other, and then finally Mogambi came forward and shook hands with Jack.

"I apologise," Mogambi told him, looking for all the world like he was about to choke on his own words. "What I said before was unacceptable."

"Apology accepted," Jack replied simply and sincerely. Then all eyes turned to Fischer, whose face had turned an unattractive shade of puce.

"I can't accept this," Fischer said with his gaze fixed firmly on the Prime Minister. "This is beyond ridiculous. It's utterly farcical! Torchwood's mandate gives it priority over UNIT in the United Kingdom, and you're putting this, this aberration in charge? It's insane!"

"You either accept this," the Prime Minister warned him, "or you'll be transferred elsewhere, and be made to resign your post as UNIT Chief for the United Kingdom."

"You have no authority to force a choice like that on me," Fischer spat. "Not even the Queen does."

"No, but _we_ do," Anderson cut in. "And right at this moment, if it went to a vote, I suspect that it would not go in your favour."

Fischer looked around the room at his colleagues, and whilst he saw sympathy in the eyes of some, for the most part it was indifference or worse. He had no choice, he realised in dismay.

"Right, then," Anderson said when Fischer visibly capitulated. "Perhaps we can all sit down now, and get on with the business of discussing the defence and safety of this planet, like the supposedly civilised people that we are. Captain Harkness and Mr Jones? Welcome to the table, gentlemen."

Jack nodded politely in response, and only Ianto and the Doctor saw the subtle release of tension from his body.

"Thankyou, General Anderson."

Jack took a seat at the table, immensely grateful for Ianto's calming presence beside him. The talking began again almost immediately, and for a while Jack found himself thoroughly caught up in the business being discussed. When, some time later, he thought to look up again, he wasn't entirely surprised to find that the Doctor was gone.

* * *

The Time Lord was waiting patiently for them when they returned to the TARDIS that evening, leaning oh-so-casually against the wall of the ancient ship. He could see the relief in Jack's eyes clearly, and knew the immortal had harboured a quiet fear that perhaps the Time Lord had simply gone and left them both behind. It was a fear that he appeared to have kept carefully to himself, the Doctor guessed as he observed Ianto's nonchalant posture.

"I take it the conference went well?"

Jack snorted.

"Most of them are pompous jerks. Although, I think I could work with Anderson. Mogambi, too. Once he had the balls to admit he was wrong, he turned out to be a pretty decent guy."

"Fischer might try to cause us trouble," Ianto mused. "He has a couple of sympathisers in amongst that lot, too. It wouldn't be anything overt, though. He wouldn't dare."

"I have complete faith that you can handle anything he might try," the Doctor said confidently.

"Together," Jack added. "As long as we're together, nothing can stop us. Right, Yan?"

It was Ianto's turn to chuckle, then.

"That sounds like a bad Eighties' ballad. However, it is true, nevertheless."

"And you both know that you only need to call," the Doctor reminded them. "I promise I won't let you down again."

"We know," Jack assured him. "I can't say I'm not nervous about this, but this time it's my choice to be left behind. That's really important to me."

"You have control over your own life again, Jack," the Doctor told him. "You can make your own choices again, for better or worse. That also means you also have responsibilities to the people around you who might be affected by those decisions. I'm trusting you not to forget that."

"I won't," Jack promised him. "Doctor, you're not going to forget about me again, are you?"

Instead of the annoyance that Jack was obviously expecting, the Doctor smiled warmly, and took Jack's hand in his own.

"Come with me, Jack. I have a special gift for you. I was going to wait until your last day on the TARDIS, but I think you need it now. Ianto, you come too, please."

The Doctor led them through a maze of corridors to a warmly lit room that had just one single item in it. Sitting on a square pedestal, bathed in a warm glow, was an unearthly looking piece of coral. It meant nothing to Ianto, but Jack gasped softly at the sight of it.

"Is that what I think it is?"

The Doctor smiled.

"Yes, it is. A gift from the old girl especially for you, Jack."

"Excuse the luddite," Ianto piped up, "but what is it?"

"It's a piece of the TARDIS," the Doctor explained. "A living piece of the old girl. Her gift to Jack, so that he always knows how much we love him. More than that, though, if it's taken care of properly, this little piece of coral has the potential to grow into a TARDIS in its own right. It might take hundreds, maybe even thousands of years, but…"

There was a fleeting look of pain in Jack's eyes.

"Hey, it's not like I haven't got the time, right?"

"I'm sorry," the Doctor apologised, pointedly avoiding meeting the glare that he knew Ianto was directing at him right then. "I didn't mean it in that way." He shook his head with a frustrated sigh. "Rude, and not ginger… Anyway, the coral is sentient, Jack. As it grows, and becomes more aware, it'll bond with you. When it eventually grows into a TARDIS, it'll be your TARDIS. Do you understand what we're giving you, Jack?"

Tears burned in Jack's eyes.

"Companionship. No matter what, I'll never be alone again."

Ianto stared at the Doctor in astonishment, and the Time Lord did meet his gaze then with a rueful smile.

"Acceptable, Mr Jones?"

Ianto's lips curled upwards in a small, but warm smile.

"Yes, Doctor. Very acceptable."

* * *

They moved out of the TARDIS and into their own home two linear weeks later. Shopping for furniture hadn't been the disaster that Ianto had anticipated. Aside from certain embarrassing questions that Jack had asked when they were looking for a suitable mattress, and an unmentionable incident in a mirror store, it had been a relatively pain-free exercise.

They weren't done yet, but they had enough of the basics to be comfortable when the day came to move in. Or, as Jack had so eloquently put it, they had enough shag opportunities until they could acquire more furniture. Ianto honestly hadn't known whether to laugh or groan.

The Doctor and Rose had seen them in and gotten the grand tour; most of which had been led by Ianto, except for the bedroom and the skylight. Those two things Jack had pointed out with extreme enthusiasm.

From there, they trekked to the Hub, and the Doctor gave his approval to the work that Jack and Ianto had done there to clean the place up and ready it for use once more. He hadn't been especially thrilled to see the cells still functioned, but Jack promised to contact him promptly, should they ever be required to hold any potentially dangerous, displaced aliens.

It had been bitter-sweet when the Doctor and Rose finally took their leave and headed off once more, this time minus two companions. Jack wept, and for once Ianto couldn't fault him for it. He felt much like crying himself.

"I'll come by every so often," the Doctor promised as he hugged first Jack, and then Ianto. "Just to see how you're both doing, and maybe for a cup of tea. You both have means to contact me, if you need to. It's going to be fine. You're both going to be fine." He returned his attention to Jack, and smiled affectionately. "Now, Jack, there's no need for tears. It's not the end of anything."

Jack rubbed self-consciously at his eyes.

"I know. It's just hard to believe we've gotten to this point. I still think I would have been better off as a coward, but I'm glad I met you."

"Jack," the Doctor said, reaching up and drawing Jack in close for another embrace, "my dear Jack. You were never a coward. Misguided, perhaps, but never a coward. Trust me now when I tell you that you're going to be fine."

"I do trust you," Jack whispered. "Always have, always will."

A brilliant grin broke out across the Doctor's face, and he gently withdrew from his companion's embrace.

"And on that note, I think it's time we were off, Rose."

"Where are you headed?" Ianto wondered as Jack moved back to his side and took his hand, seeking out support that Ianto willingly gave. "Back into the vortex?"

"Actually," the Doctor said in an entirely too casual tone, "I think we'll head back to Arthemix Five. I have a slavery ring to put a stop to."

His expression was pleasant enough at a glance, but there was steel in his eyes as he spoke, and in that moment Ianto was never so glad that the Doctor counted him as a friend. The Doctor went on in a deceptively cheerful voice.

"After that, we'll be paying a visit to London. Been picking up some odd readings from a hospital. I'm sure it's nothing, but…"

Jack chuckled.

"With you, Doctor, it's never nothing. We'll keep our ears open for stories of hospitals teleporting to Mars."

The Doctor looked disdainful.

"Honestly, Jack. No need to be ridiculous."

"C'mon," Rose groaned. "Let's get a move on. These two bozos probably wanna go christen their new bed."

A blinding grin lit up Jack's face.

"And the couch in the living room, and the shower, and the bath, and the kitchen bench…"

His enthusiastic list was cut short by Ianto's elbow in his side.

"Some things should be kept private, cariad," he said in a warning tone.

"What?" Jack protested. "They know we're fu… mph!"

"I think that's our cue to be leaving," the Doctor said with a smirk as Ianto clamped a hand firmly over Jack's mouth. With a final farewell to them both, the Doctor and Rose headed back into the TARDIS and a minute later the time ship disappeared from sight. Then, and only then, did Ianto remove his hand from Jack's mouth.

"Well, Jack, are you ready to go home?"

The good-natured leer faded, and Jack nodded eagerly.

"Yeah, I am."

* * *

Late that night, Ianto stirred and awoke to an empty bed. He lay still for a long moment, reminding himself firmly that everything was fine. They were in their own home and there was nothing to harm them. It didn't explain Jack's absence, though. Equally concerned and curious, Ianto slid out of bed and went looking for his wayward lover.

* * *

He didn't have to go far. Jack was in the living room, sprawled out on the floor directly underneath the skylight. He appeared to be asleep, with his precious blanket tucked underneath his head as makeshift pillow. Ianto smiled with affection at the sight. Right at that moment, Jack looked more at peace than Ianto had ever seen him.

He continued to watch Jack for the next few minutes, simply enjoying the sight of his lover resting easy, when Jack's voice spoke sleepily, breaking the quiet atmosphere.

"You gonna stand there staring all night, or are you gonna come down here and join me?"

Ianto resisted the urge to make a rude comment, and instead eased himself down onto the floor beside Jack. The immortal shifted and slipped his arms around Ianto's body.

"You're nice and warm," Jack mumbled contentedly. Ianto smothered his laughter against Jack's shoulder.

"Is that all I am to you? Your own personal heat pillow?"

"Much more," Jack murmured. Ianto uttered soft sigh.

"Why aren't you still in bed, where it's warm?"

Jack pointed up.

"Look. Really look. What do you see?"

Ianto frowned a little, but did as he was asked. At first, he simply saw the night sky, peppered with stars. He looked harder, and saw that some stars glittered, whilst others appeared to be a solid light.

"There are planets up there," he said finally. "Other galaxies… Whole other civilisations."

Jack smiled, and hugged Ianto close.

"Some of those planets will be home to human colonies in the future."

"Like where you were born? What was it like, Jack?"

"We were near a beach," Jack said quietly. "It wasn't tropical, or anything. A lot of the time it was cold there, and the winds could be fierce. We all had to have these geeky looking goggles to protect us from sand blindness. It was good, though. I had a family that loved me, and I loved them… At least, until the monsters came."

"I'm sorry," Ianto murmured regretfully. "I shouldn't have asked."

"No, I'm glad you did," Jack told him. "I need to try and remember the happy things as well as the bad. I don't want to remember only the terrible thing that happened."

Ianto shifted and rested his head comfortably on Jack's chest.

"Talk to me, then, love. Tell me about the happy things that you remember."

And so, lying comfortably together on the newly carpeted floor beneath the skylight, Jack talked long into the early hours of the morning.

_Fin_.


End file.
